On the night of October 7, 2026, a group of 25 Mt Kenya elders met at the private home of Kiama Kia Ma patron Mr Kung’u Muigai in Kiambu County and resolved to reconcile former President Uhuru Kenyatta, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, former Deputy President Rigathi Gachagua and Wiper Party boss Mr Kalonzo Musyoka.
The four were profiled as the leading influencers in Mt Kenya’s political discourse ahead of the 2027 General Election. Mr Musyoka made the list following the endorsement of the Akamba people as Southerners of the Mt Kenya voting bloc.
In what makes the elders’ night meeting appear to involve behind-the-scenes sponsorship, all four politicians have, in the recent past, endorsed calls for unity. On July 25, 2026, Prof Kindiki mandated former Meru governor Kiraitu Murungi to help him meet Mr Kenyatta for unity talks.
On October 7, 2026, former Agriculture Cabinet Secretary Mithika Linturi announced that “Mr Gachagua, who is my party boss, has told us to cease all fights against Kindiki and Mr Kenyatta ahead of unity talks”.
Former President Uhuru Kenyatta.
Photo credit: Bonface Bogita | Nation Media Group
For his part, Mr Kenyatta, while attending the burial ceremony of Martha Karua’s father in Kirinyaga County on October 3, 2026, said: “Time has come for us to cease petty fights and unite for our people and our country.”
Mr Musyoka, at the same burial ceremony, said: “For the first time, I go to the negotiation table perfectly aligned with my cousins as we commence our national dialogue for liberating Kenya, while at the same time respecting those who are aligned with the status quo as our brothers and sisters pursuing their luck in government formation.”
According to Mr Muigai, the meeting was necessitated by what he termed the “permeation of politics of divisions, malice and petty fights that threaten how the region preserves its unity of purpose ahead of 2027.”
The meeting brought together elders from the Agikuyu (10), Ameru (six), Akamba (five) and Aembu (four) communities. Discussions started at 8pm and ended at 3am.
“We wanted a meeting that had no politicians or political platform influencers. We first admitted to ourselves that we, as elders, also needed to reconstitute and formalise our existence to gain a legitimate mandate to represent the interests of our collective people. As we speak, Kiama Kia Ma is not legitimate since it has no legally recognised officials and has never held elections since 2018,” Mr Muigai said.
However, the elders present decided to serve as interim officials of the outfit and resolved to pursue the unity of the four leaders as the command centre of the region’s communities ahead of 2027.
Deputy President Kithure Kindiki delivers his speech after he was installed as the Mt Kenya spokesperson at Kirigiti Stadium in Kiambu County.
Photo credit: DPCS
“Mr Kenyatta is a statesman. Prof Kindiki is in power and holds the most senior political position. Mr Gachagua has the ground, and Mr Musyoka is among our most promising talents ahead of 2027. If the four came together and decided among themselves how we should approach 2027, we would be a force in the political discourse,” he said.
Mr Muigai said the region currently had no kingpin, adding that the people were calling the shots by demanding that the leaders unite and approach politics from a common front.
“The only complication we have is that Prof Kindiki is the odd man out since he is in government while the others are in opposition. But we have resolved to support him to be retained as President William Ruto’s running mate, while welcoming him into our fold should he miss the position. Mr Kenyatta, Mr Gachagua and Mr Musyoka, on the other hand, should organise themselves and present to us the alternative political choice,” he said.
Mr Muigai said it was resolved that a meeting bringing together all four leaders would be arranged by a team of selected elders, clergy, businesspeople and former senior politicians by December 2026.
Mzee Ngaruiya Mutegi reminded the meeting of the November 30, 2012, incident when Mr Kenyatta called elders from all regions of the country to a meeting at the Bomas of Kenya for consultations on strengthening The National Alliance (TNA) political party ahead of his 2013 presidential bid, which he won.
He narrated how Mr Kenyatta was embarrassed when all the other communities had each settled on one representative to articulate their issues.
DCP Party leader Rigathi Gachagua addressing journalists in Nairobi on July 10, 2026.
Photo credit: Bonface Bogita | Nation Media Group
Mzee Mutegi urged elders to stop being overzealous in seeking to portray themselves as valuing individual or group material gains in exchange for favourable words to the highest bidder to influence the political direction of the communities.
The elders unanimously decided to shelve the crowns that had already been conferred on Mr Kenyatta in 2012, Justin Muturi in 2021 and Prof Kindiki in 2026, with each having been mandated to speak for the Mountain.
“Until we get them together and emerge with a harmonised structure, our proposal is that Mr Kenyatta be the chief adviser, Mr Gachagua be our political mobiliser, Mr Musyoka be our platinum member, and Prof Kindiki pursue his luck on behalf of this region on the government side,” Mr Mutegi said.
Political analyst Mr Malila Munywoki said the elders were mostly an organised group of rent-seekers who knew that Mt Kenya voters made their own decisions and leaders aligned themselves accordingly.
“This explains why we have cases where elders in Mt Kenya crowned women, even when, as purported custodians of the area’s culture, they know this is a cultural aggression since we are yet to agree on women spokesmen for our collective power bids,” he said.
The elders have also crowned “strangers” whose communities have their own elders. A case in point was in 2021, when the same elders crowned Mr Raila Odinga as the region’s spokesman.
Wiper party leader Kalonzo Musyoka addresses party delegates at Wiper House in Nairobi on April 24, 2025.
Photo credit: Francis Nderitu | Nation Media Group
Kikuyu Council of Elders chairman Wachira Kiago told Daily Nation that the night meeting was necessary to address divisions among the elders.
“We have been trying hard to create a stronger wing of a genuine council, complete with structures and harmonised communication. Unfortunately, once in a while, politicians out to shadowbox each other come up with sponsored groupings for self-centred ends,” he said.
He agreed that the role of elders in giving political direction was greatly hindered by disunity among politicians.
“The elders had, since 1963, offered wise counsel in political discourse. With the advent of multiparty politics in 1992, we started experiencing fractures based on competing camps,” he said.
Mzee Joshua Njagi, representing Embu County, said the meeting resolved to pursue reconciliation among competing groups of elders.
“We have elders who are supposed to be charged in court over the 2019 forgery incident involving our documents. We will pursue dialogue over court cases. We will insist on launching inclusive reconciliation meetings across Mt Kenya to establish a newly reconstituted team of elders that brings together all the communities that reside in Mt Kenya West, East, South and the diaspora,” he said.
He added that it was agreed that the coronations would be reset, with no recognised spokesperson for the time being.
He said bylaws would be formulated to guide future coronations, adding that the current method was divisive.
