Madagascar opposition call for poll boycott amid tension

Madagascar’s Collectif de Dix opposition coalition of 10 parties has called on voters to boycott Thursday presidential election amid worsening political tension that is engulfing the country.

Ten of the 13 presidential candidates registered for the election have been demanding an overhaul of the country’s highest court and the electoral commission before the polls take place.

They allege that incumbent President Andry Rajoelina, who is seeking re-election, is ineligible due to the French citizenship he acquired in 2014, an accusation he has dismissed.

The leader of the lower house of parliament, who is a member of the president's own party, has also called for the vote to be suspended as the conditions were not right.

Over the past six weeks, hundreds of opposition supporters have continued to hold banned marches in the capital, Antananarivo, which police have routinely dispersed using teargas. They have also arrested some opposition supporters.