Understanding psyche of Mt Kenya voters

Mt Kenya voters have very unique political traits. The following list of traits is neither based on any scientific data or research. This is purely observational and hence it might be erroneous. But consider it for whatever value it has.

First, Mt Kenya voters are people who exhibit alexithymia, sometimes referred to as ‘emotional blindness”. These are persons who hide their emotions. They will be crying when actually they are laughing. They will be laughing and clapping when actually they are crying. As a result, one can easily misread their body language. And this is odd. Anthropologists that study human evolution insist the ability to read a person’s attitude and thoughts by their behaviour was the original communication form used by humans.

Spoken language evolved later. That means body language is a far more superior form of communication than spoken words on account of being an older "language ". For example, a facial expression of sadness will be picked easily by fellow communicators than verbal expression of sadness.

This trait has huge political implication. It means leaders can easily misread the mood of Mt Kenya voters because it is hidden. And the body language of Mt Kenya voters can sometimes say the opposite. Mt Kenya voters will be clapping for a leader whom they have a huge problem with. And vice versa.

So, where did Mt Kenya people acquire this habit of hiding their political emotions from? Probably during their traumatic encounters with the British in the pre-colonial period of the 1890s and the Mau Mau war of 1950s. These two periods required Mt Kenya people to hide their feelings otherwise they could be outed with great consequences. If you were a Mau Mau sympathiser, one needed to appear as a Ngati (traitor). People used to pass coded messages to survive.

They also spoke in parables. Probably this became Mt Kenya people’s natural reflex. This trait differs with political behaviour in other regions. Take for example the Lake region people. When they love someone they truly love. And they show it passionately. Their body language can never be misread.

Equal rights and opportunities

The second important political trait for Mt Kenya voter is their single-minded focus on development. Their roads, water, agriculture and so on. 

I recently overheard a conversation between a Mt Kenya person and a young man from another part of Kenya.

"How do you rate your ex- governor?" The Mt Kenya voter asked the young man.

"The ex- governor was very good. He empowered the people around him. They all became rich," the young man replied.

"Really? Is a leader performance gauged on enriching his circle or the people? I thought the measure should be how many new hospitals or schools he built," the Mt Kenya guy responded. 

Leaders in some regions are weighed against how huge the amount of money they dish out is. Sometimes it is how vocal they are in Parliament or elsewhere. This is more apparent in regions where there is a grievance culture. 

Mt Kenya voters are the opposite. That explains why wise presidential candidates campaign in Mt Kenya on issues like tea, coffee and milk. Bread and butter issues resonate with the region. 

Thirdly, Mt Kenya voters are highly egalitarian. These are societies that believe people should have equal rights and opportunities. Traditionally, Mt Kenya governance system was based on council of elders where every opinion mattered. Of course women were excluded in this governance system although there were exceptions like Wangu Wa Makeri from Murang’a who was a powerful female leader. 

In contrast, some societies are highly hierarchical and vertical in nature. In such communities, persons holding positions up there dictate political direction. A rich businessman. A top civil servant. The academia. Often a Mt Kenya hawker will convince a rich businessman on political choices. 

Elected women leaders

This horizontal organisational structure of Mt Kenya causes politicians to reach as many people as possible. In hierarchical societies, convincing few elites is often enough to garner political support. 

Finally, women hold a disproportionate political influence in Mt Kenya. One Mt Kenya proverb states "it cannot survive once rejected by women." Probably this stems from the organisation structure of the Mt Kenya social fabric. Mt Kenya women are highly egalitarian. They tend to congregate around social groups that do not have class or age boundaries. A newly married young woman will be in a chama that has a very old grandmother. The opposite is true for the men. The elderly men socialise distinctly from the young men. In rural-urban centres in the region, men will occupy different social places based on their age and at times economic status. 

This gender social setup has huge political impact. It means women will discuss political issues jointly and take collective conclusion. If so and so is a good or bad political leader, every woman in the village will make almost the same decision since the discussion preceding the conclusion was probably done collectively in a chama.

But for men there will be a split along age lines because different age sets socialise distinctly. 

Women also meet and socialise more. In school meetings, churches. and farms.

But some men live a solitary life, hence political decision will be solo and without " group think". That reduces collective political bargaining power for this gender.

This also means Mt Kenya region has a disproportionate high number of elected women leaders — from MCAs to governors. A woman aspirant will be weighed against what she can deliver, not on extraneous consideration. 

Mt Kenya region voters are never in a hurry to take a decisive political stand. Probably this mirrors their socialisation as farmers. Settled farmers take time to sow, undertake weeding and harvest. In the same way, Mt Kenya political decision is always done in slow motion. There is no hurry in Mt Kenya politically speaking. 

The writer is the governor of Murang’a County; Email [email protected]