Veteran journalist and political analyst Macharia Gaitho has defended political dynasties against allegations of being the cause of problems the country is facing.
Lately, a section of politicians have been pushing a hustlers versus dynasties narrative, urging the former to rise against the latter in the 2022 general election.
This is amid claims President Uhuru Kenyatta and ODM leader Raila Odinga were planning to use their handshake as a political vehicle in the next polls.
Uhuru is Kenya’s founding President mzee Jomo Kenyatta's son, while Raila is son of first Vice-President Oginga Odinga.
Allies of Deputy President William Ruto who have branded themselves as the 'Hustler Nation', have been accusing Uhuru and Raila (dynasties) of a plot to use the Building Bridges Initiative (BBI) to continue being in power.
However, according to Gaitho, even though the dynasties have contributed in perpetuating tribalism in the country, it was not fair to blame them wholly on everything wrong in Kenya.
He said the 'Hustler Nation' should not point an accusing finger at the Kenyatta and Odinga families, since election-related violence have often occurred in the Rift Valley, Ruto's political stronghold.
"It is true that the Kenyatta-Odinga feud, and by extension the Kikuyu-Luo ethnic feud, has held back Kenya since the early years of independence and contributed to divisive elections and feelings of alienation," he wrote in his column published by Daily Nation on Tuesday
"However, Kenya’s problems go beyond the Kenyattas and the Odingas. If anything, the resulting ethnic rivalries pale in contrast to the bloody electoral conflicts that often erupt in Mr Ruto’s Kalenjin backyard," Gaitho added.
The journalist singled out negative ethnicity as Kenya's major problem and asked the BBI, which is expected to give its report within a month, to come up with a solution which will not be about benefiting individuals at the expense of others.
"The BBI task force should therefore keep in mind that a solution to the ethnic antagonism and violent politics demands more than accommodation between two protagonists," he added.