Former National Cohesion and Integration Commission (NCIC) commissioner Gitile Naituli says the Mt Kenya region remains firmly united by deep socio-cultural ties despite political differences, arguing that communities such as the Kikuyu, Meru and Embu cannot easily be divided.
Speaking on Radio Generation on Monday, Naituli maintained that while political loyalties may shift over time, family and cultural bonds across the region are too deeply entrenched to be broken.
"Mount Kenya East and the West is not together ideologically or politically; it's together socio-culturally. We share the same cultures, we are intermarried, we live together," he said.
Pointing to the close historical ties between communities in the region, Naituli argued that the integration between the Kikuyu, Meru and Embu is extensive.
"You can divide people politically, but when they are a family, then you can't divide them. If it's your cultural integration, then it's very difficult to divide," he said.
He cited intermarriages and decades of coexistence, noting that many families have roots across the different communities, making attempts to split the region along ethnic lines difficult.
Turning to the region's politics, Naituli argued that former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua has emerged as the dominant political figure in Mt Kenya because of his growing grassroots support.
"Gachagua has very clearly taken the leadership of the mountain," he said, adding that leaders perceived to be aligned with President William Ruto are steadily losing influence in the region.
"They don't see Kindiki. When they look at Kindiki, they see Ruto, and they are not interested with Ruto, so again he disappears in that particular equation," Naituli said.
He described political leadership as being determined by loyal followers rather than official positions.
"Leadership is actually about followership," he said, citing ODM leader Raila Odinga as an example of a politician who commands unwavering support.
He also pointed to Nairobi Senator Edwin Sifuna as another politician who has built a loyal political base.
"Sifuna now has also established leadership because now he has followership... Gachagua now is having followers. Sifuna is having followers. This is the major difference," he said.
Naituli added that Gachagua's influence in the region has become so significant that aspiring leaders are increasingly looking to him for political endorsement.
"I don't think anybody is going to be elected to any position in the mountain without Gachagua's blessing," he said.
His remarks come as the unity of the vote-rich Mt Kenya region continues to dominate Kenya's political discourse following recent developments, including the Ol Kalou parliamentary by-election, where the Democracy for the Citizens Party (DCP) secured a landslide victory over the ruling United Democratic Alliance (UDA), a result widely viewed by political analysts as a key test of influence in the region ahead of the 2027 General Election.