Cécile Manorohanta as replacement Prime Minister: A new stroke against Monja Roindefo

Andry Rajoelina does not consider Monja Roindefo as his Prime minister anymore. It is now clear. The president of the HAT did not take the suspension of Eugene Mangalaza’s appointment as Prime minister in account, following a request put forth by Roindefo to the State Council.  

Due to the absence of Eugene Mangalaza, Andry Rajoelina has temporarily entrusted the charges of Prime Minister to Vice Prime minister Cécile Manorohanta. An order has been signed to this end during a recent Cabinet meeting. The president of the HAT is, by so doing, clearly specifying that Monja Roindefo is no more Madagascar’s Prime Minister in spite of his refusal to leave the palace of Mahazoarivo.  

The State Council’s verdict subsequent to Monja Roindefo’s request for a possible cancellation of Eugene Mangalaza’s appointment is not yet known though. The Justice minister, Christine Razanamahasoa, has anyway pulled rank on Judges by stating that the State Council is not authorized to judge a “governmental act”.  

The suspension of the new Prime minister’s appointment order has somehow comforted Monja Roindefo, who is still to be considering his own self as the lone acting Prime Minister until the State Council’s verdict rendering. This suspension was yet supposed to last no longer than three days, replied Christine Razanamahasoa.  

Such is the judicial mind twister which is, as for now, haunting to top of the High Authority of Transition. The reality is that the new Prime minister does not even have any office, and preferred to run away in France, in order not to have the crowd taking the mickey out of him. As far as he is concerned, the outgoing government chief is still entrenched in side the Prime Minister’s palace closely surrounded by some one hundred heavily armed soldiers. Cécile Manorohanta has been designated interim Prime minister in this more than confused context. “I am to run the administration and address the on-going files until the setting up of the new government” she stated. 

A crucial question remains anyway: how to push Monja Roindefo out of from the palace of Mahazoarivo? Some diplomats had tried to persuade Monja Roindefo to accept other positions within the Transition. For the time being, mediation efforts from members of the HAT failed to produce anything. Monja Roindefo and Andry Rajoelina are currently fighting at a distance. The pro Rajoelina Andry press is already classifying the outgoing Prime minister high among the rivals of the president of the HAT.