By IP reporter.
NAIROBI
On Aug. 27, Kenya will mark 15 years since the promulgation of the 2010 Constitution, a historic charter that once promised democratic transformation, accountability and justice.
As the country prepares to commemorate Katiba Day a dark cloud hangs over the celebrations.
The Constitution is not just under pressure but is under assault.
President William Ruto’s administration has increasingly shown contempt for the constitutional order.
Selective implementation, political manipulation and overt violations have become routine.
What was envisioned as a framework to restrain executive power is now being used or ignored to entrench it.
The administration has cherry-picked parts of the Constitution that suit its political agenda.
While systematically undermining provisions that guarantee accountability, protect civil liberties and promote checks and balances.
From attempts to emasculate the Judiciary through budgetary threats to deploying state agencies against critics, the signs of executive overreach are unmistakable.
Fifteen years ago, Kenyans overwhelmingly endorsed a Constitution that promised a break from the authoritarian past.
It decentralized power, created stronger institutions and elevated human rights.
Today, that vision is fading fast as the presidency reclaims its place as the unaccountable center of power this time cloaked in the language of reform.
The shift is not subtle. State power is being wielded with vengeance, dissent is punished and public participation is increasingly cosmetic.
Institutions meant to serve as checks are either co-opted or cowed into silence.
Yet the Constitution is not the problem. It is the political class that has betrayed it.
Ruto’s government has not just neglected the Constitution it has actively weaponized state power to reverse its gains.
The result is a growing sense of disillusionment among citizens who once believed that 2010 marked a permanent turning point.
As Kenya marks Katiba Day, the real question is not whether the Constitution has delivered.
It is whether we, as a country, are still willing to defend it.
The Constitution at 15 is not just an anniversary but is a wake-up call.
