Ramaphosa bids farewell to liberation stalwart Farisani

‘Extraordinary man who led an extraordinary life’

- By Tshwarelo eseng Mogakane

In a moving eulogy delivered before mourners that included traditional VhaVenda royalty, senior government officials, and religious leaders, President Cyril Ramaphosa described the late Dr Dean Tshenuwani Farisani as “an extraordinary man who led an extraordinary life”.

Held in the heart of Venda in Limpopo, the funeral drew high-profile guests from across the country, all paying tribute to a man who defied the brutality of apartheid, challenged the church, and stood as a towering voice in both the pulpit and the political arena.

“It was no coincidence that Dr Tshenuwani Farisani was born in 1948,” Ramaphosa told the mourners. “It was a turning point in the history of our country. This was the year when the National Party swept to power and ushered in the reviled and evil system of apartheid that was declared a crime against humanity by the United Nations.”

Ramaphosa, who co-founded the Black Evangelical Youth Organisation with Farisani in the 1970s, said the injustices the cleric endured shaped his political awakening.