The same young protesters who helped bring Colonel Michael Randrianirina to power are now watching him screen cabinet ministers with polygraph tests.

Randrianirina announced Thursday that he and his new prime minister, anti-corruption chief Mamitiana Rajaonarison, will only interview ministerial candidates who pass a lie detector test. “We will know who is corrupt and who can help us, who is going to betray the youth struggle,” he told local media.

The irony is not lost on the “Gen Z Madagascar” activists whose protests helped topple President Andry Rajoelina in October. One of the movement’s social media managers called the polygraph requirement “a joke and embarrassing,” noting accurately that the technology is not scientifically proven to work reliably.

Randrianirina came to power after weeks of youth-led demonstrations against water and power cuts that escalated into demands for political overhaul. At least 22 people were killed in the early protests, according to the UN. When Randrianirina’s elite military unit backed the protesters, Rajoelina fled to Dubai.

The new leader has pledged elections by late 2027. But regional precedents from Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger suggest military rulers often extend their deadlines. Madagascar ranks 148 out of 180 countries on Transparency International’s corruption index. A GDP per capita of $545 makes it one of the world’s poorest nations.

Randrianirina says he’s seeking ministers who are “over 60% clean.” He has not explained what questions the polygraph will ask, or what happens to candidates who fail.

Sources