Madagascar’s interim military president has said new ministers must pass lie detector tests as part of efforts to weed out corruption, after he dismissed the prime minister and cabinet without explanation earlier this month.
Michael Randrianirina seized power in October in a coup following weeks of youth-led protests under the banner “Gen Z Madagascar.” Young protesters initially backed the change but quickly became disillusioned by his ministerial choices, which many saw as drawn from the old, corrupt elite.
Randrianirina told local media the government would use polygraphs for background integrity checks. He said a new cabinet would be announced soon and that the tests would help determine “who is corrupt and who can help us, who is going to betray the youth struggle.”
Protests in Madagascar began in September over water and power cuts and escalated into broader demands for a complete overhaul of the political system. According to the UN, at least 22 people were killed in the early days of the unrest.
On 11 October the elite military unit Capsat, in which Randrianirina served as a colonel, sided with protesters. The following day, President Andry Rajoelina reportedly fled the country for Dubai on a French military plane. Randrianirina was sworn in as interim president and has pledged to hold elections by late 2027; Gen Z activists have pressed him to confirm that timetable while criticizing his appointments for alleged ties to the former regime.
Randrianirina dismissed the prime minister and cabinet on 9 March and on Sunday named anti-corruption chief Mamitiana Rajaonarison as prime minister-designate. He said he and Rajaonarison would only interview ministerial candidates who passed polygraph tests, adding: “We’re not looking for someone who is 100% clean, but over 60%. That way, Madagascar will finally be able to develop.”
Some Gen Z campaigners expressed scepticism about the use of polygraphs. A manager of the movement’s social media accounts called the tests “not even scientifically proven to work” and described the idea as “a joke and embarrassing,” though he said he still saw the current regime as an improvement on that of Rajoelina.
Madagascar is among the world’s poorest countries, with a World Bank–reported GDP per capita of $545 in 2024. The island is rich in resources such as vanilla and gemstones, which critics say have been exploited by corrupt officials and businesspeople. The country ranked 148 out of 180 in Transparency International’s 2025 corruption perceptions index.
Agence-France Presse and Associated Press contributed to this report.
