Chamisa Announces Political Comeback, Calling for ‘A Fresh Start’

Former opposition leader Nelson Chamisa has announced his return to frontline politics, issuing a sweeping indictment of the country’s governance and calling for what he describes as a fresh start to rescue the country from deepening political, economic and social crisis. In a lengthy statement, the ex–Citizens Coalition for Change (CCC) leader painted a bleak picture of a nation, he says is trapped in a vicious cycle of disputed elections, economic hardship and eroded public trust — decades after independence. “Our nation faces a pivotal moment and stands at a critical juncture,” Chamisa said arguing that the promise of independence has failed to deliver “shared prosperity, dignity and opportunity for all”.

Chamisa accused the government of presiding over what he termed a legitimacy crisis rooted in rigged elections, state capture, endemic corruption and political intolerance. He claimed that state institutions have been scooped out and public services reduced to instruments of partisan loyalty rather than national service. The country, he said is suffering not only from economic collapse and political uncertainty but from “social collapse and moral decay”, with citizens increasingly treated as subjects rather than sovereign holders of power.

His remarks come against a backdrop of persistent economic instability and high unemployment. Chamisa reserved particular criticism for the treatment of Zimbabweans living abroad, saying many had been forced to leave the country in search of survival rather than opportunity. “The struggle is real,” he said citing immigration challenges, harassment and what he described as unlawful detentions and humiliating treatment faced by Zimbabweans in the diaspora. At the heart of Chamisa’s comeback is what he calls Agenda 2026 — a political reset aimed at breaking decisively from the past.