The Madagascar opposition said on Saturday it had toppled the government of President Marc Ravalomanana and promised fresh elections following months of unrest that have left over 100 dead. Rajoelina then called on Ravalomanana to "humbly leave power in the next four hours".
"The president of the Republic, the National Assembly and the Senate, and the government are removed from their duties," said opposition leader Roindefo Zafitsimivalo Monja, reading from a declaration signed by opposition chief Andry Rajoelina.
"We commit to organising presidential, parliamentary and district elections, in not more than 24 months," said Monja, the opposition's nominee for the post of prime minister.
The power grab by the opposition, which has accused Ravalomanana of running a dictatorship, came after the president acknowledged making mistakes in a crisis that has claimed scores of lives since the start of the year.
Monja, who spoke to journalists from the prime minister's office after the opposition took control of the building, was accompanied by other opposition ministerial nominees and around 30 soldiers. "We state that the president of the republic is no longer in a position to exercise the role allocated to him by the Constitution and that it is clear the armed forces refuse to obey the president," he added.
After being in hiding for over a week, Rajoelina on Saturday made his first public appearance at a gathering of several thousand supporters in the capital, an AFP journalist witnessed.
On Thursday followers of both Ravalomanana and Rajoelina took to the streets to press their campaigns following weeks of mounting tension which began in January after Rajoelina called anti-government protests.