Chamisa salutes Geza

FORMER Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader Nelson Chamisa has paid glowing tribute to late Zanu-PF Central Committee member Blessed Runesu Geza, hailing him for standing up against President Emmerson Mnangagwa's reported bid to extend his term of office to 2030.

Geza died on Friday morning in exile in South Africa, where he had fled after tensions escalated over his outspoken opposition to the controversial 2030 agenda.

A liberation struggle veteran, Geza emerged as one of the most vocal internal critics of Mnangagwa, leading a group of war veterans and Zanu-PF members who publicly challenged the President over alleged plans to extend his tenure beyond constitutional limits.

In a condolence message posted on his X account on Saturday, Chamisa said Geza's defiance had ignited an irreversible movement and vowed that efforts to extend Mnangagwa's presidency would be defeated.

"GEZA…You broke rank. You saw the light and lit the way. A flame kindled that will never fade, only grow. The flame you kindled will forever glow and grow into a bonfire. You did your bit and sparked a flame no darkness can quench. The light lives on.

"There shall be no extension of anything!!! Your declaration stands," Chamisa wrote.

Chamisa, 48, recently announced his return to active politics after taking a sabbatical following the effective takeover of the CCC by self-styled interim secretary-general Sengezo Tshabangu, whom Chamisa has described as a Zanu-PF "Trojan horse".

Opposition to any attempt to extend Mnangagwa's rule to 2030 has since emerged as a central pillar of Chamisa's renewed political agenda.

Renowned constitutional lawyer and University of Zimbabwe law lecturer Professor Lovemore Madhuku also joined in honouring Geza, describing him as a key figure in the resistance against constitutional amendments.

"Rest in peace Blessed Bombshell Geza. My condolences to your family and comrades. In your memory and honour, the attempts to amend the Constitution to extend the President's term to 2030 will be fought and defeated," Madhuku said in a post on X.

Adding a youth perspective, former Tshabalala Member of Parliament Gift Ostallos Siziba said Geza had fulfilled his historic role and that it was now up to the younger generation to carry forward the struggle for accountable governance.

"He ran his race with courage and spoke truth to power. Those who remain, it is now our duty… to complete the unfinished business of the liberation struggle and to give real meaning to the sacrifice of all who gave their lives for our country's independence," Siziba said.

Geza fought on the front line during Zimbabwe's liberation war and remained politically active long after independence. In March 2025, he called for nationwide protests against the 2030 agenda on March 31, a move that culminated in a national stay-away that reverberated across the country.

Before fleeing into exile, Geza held several press briefings demanding Mnangagwa's resignation, citing what he described as the President's failure to decisively tackle entrenched corruption. While in South Africa, he continued to issue statements criticising both political leadership and controversial business figures, including Wicknell Chivayo, Kudakwashe Tagwirei, Delish Nguwaya and Pedzisai "Scott" Sakupwanya.

However, Zanu-PF activist Rutendo Matinyarare sparked controversy by linking Geza's death to his opposition to the 2030 agenda, framing it as an act against the nation.

"After trying to destabilize Zimbabwe through regime-change protests… Blessed Geza has died before achieving his diabolical objective," Matinyarare wrote on social media, adding that "Zimbabwe is a sacred nation; touch it not."

Meanwhile, the political battle over 2030 continues to intensify. Justice Minister Ziyambi Ziyambi recently confirmed that a draft Bill related to extending Mnangagwa's term would soon be tabled before Cabinet, before being presented to Parliament.

Zanu-PF formally adopted a resolution at its 2024 annual conference in Bulawayo calling for Mnangagwa's term extension, making it the first item of business and placing the issue firmly at the centre of national political debate.