February 7, 2012  Print Email | Madagascar's Rajoelina wants world to respect popular will
Reaffirms pledge to stage presidential polls within two years
Posted by Agencies at 10:56 AM GMT on Mar 23, 2009 | LONDON (AFP): Madagascar's transitional president, Andry Rajoelina, who promises an end to dictatorship and a new era of good governance, insisted in a newspaper interview today that he had popular support and refused to bow to pressure for snap elections.
 The 34-year-old took power after the army-backed ouster of ex-president Marc Ravalomanana last week, a move condemned as a coup by Western donors and regional powers which have threatened sanctions.
"One man alone cannot build a house. But the international community must know that they must respect the popular will. It’s the Malagasy people who decide what happens in Madagascar," Rajoelina told the Financial Times.
The paper said he reaffirmed his pledge to stage presidential polls within two years, but refused to bow to demands from donors for swift elections.
Rajoelina also rejected suggestions he took power in a coup, saying, "It was not at all a coup d’etat. The high constitutional court has validated this transfer of power."
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