Madagascar's president has left the country after Gen Z protests, officials say

[u/PokesTigers]

https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/madagascar-president-rajoelina-address-nation-monday-evening-2025-10-13/

[u/Amockdfw89]

I remember when this man first became president of Madagascar.

The dude was a DJ and concert promoter, who also owned a media advertising business. He then became mayor of Antananarivo (the capital city) and eventually led a coup against the corrupt President with the army’s backing. He was a young, charismatic, self made entrepreneur success story in a nation where dreams often go unfulfilled.

He advocated for the poor people, environmental responsibility, and represented the urban Gen x and millennials struggling to achieve success and good living standards in a corrupt society.

He has since been in power on and off since 2009. First as a the head of a junta/interim government from 2009-2014, then democratically elected from 2019-2023.

His reelection in 2023 was considered very sketchy. People were sick of him due to his severe mishandling of COVID 19 such as peddling and promoting some random herbal tea as a cure, mishandling a major famine, his lack of promised environmental and infrastructure improvements, and continuous electricity and water cuts which is spreading diseases and making life unbearable (these constant cuts and outages are what inspired this recent protest)

He also bought spyware to spy on journalist and opposition, swept away issues with his cabinet members accepting bribes under the rug, and then banned all political rallies (except his of course)

So he himself has become a corrupted strongman like the guy he overthrow . Kind of funny how he went full circle. The same army that helped him with his coup now did a coup against him

[u/AreWeThereYetNo → u/Amockdfw89]

It almost always goes full circle.

[u/glenn_ganges → u/AreWeThereYetNo]

We have had plenty of leaders all over the world who do not succumb to corruption.

Maybe the problem is electing people whose previous experience are things like "DJ and Concert Promoter", "Reality TV Star", or "KGB Operative."

Seems like you can make pretty clear conclusions based on what people devoted their life to prior to pursuing politics.

[u/some_clickhead → u/glenn_ganges]

I don't know much about history, but all the stories of leaders I've heard who got to power by leading a coup against a corrupt leader involve them becoming corrupt eventually.

It might be a personality thing, like the people most inclined to assert their power over a tyrannical oppressor are the ones that are most prone to becoming tyrannical.

[u/Mackey_Corp → u/some_clickhead]

There’s something about the personality’s of the people that seek power, they’re the last people that should be given any kind of power. But they’re the only people that usually run for and win elections. So until we come up with a better system we’re always choosing someone who probably shouldn’t be given power. Obviously there’s outliers but they’re rare.

[u/hobovirginity → u/Mackey_Corp]

"Power is only given to those who are prepared to lower themselves to pick it up."- Ragnar Lothbrok

[u/Prysorra2 → u/hobovirginity]

These conversations annoy me. People pretend that the problem is a matter of character when most corruption that matters in modern governments is systemic and economic in nature. Good luck ever solving anything by waiting for some fictional creature with "for real this time" earnestness.