Activists urge Kenyans to vote out leaders undermining the Constitution

Human rights defenders have challenged Kenyans to use the 2027 General Election to elect leaders committed to implementing the 2010 Constitution, accusing the current political leadership of undermining the very document whose 16th anniversary the country marked on August 27.

Speaking at Jevanjee Gardens in Nairobi CBD on Thursday, where activists and civil society actors gathered to reflect on the hits and misses of the Constitution on Katiba Day, the speakers said the country could not claim to have fully benefited from the transformative document while constitutional rights continued to be violated.

They singled out President William Ruto, accusing his administration of disregarding constitutional principles, and called for his resignation over what they described as persistent violations of human rights and the rule of law.

Activist and presidential hopeful Boniface Mwangi said there was little to celebrate as Kenyans marked 16 years since the promulgation of the Constitution, arguing that the country was witnessing a reversal of some of the gains that inspired its adoption.

“There is nothing to celebrate,” Mwangi said, accusing the government of presiding over enforced disappearances, abductions and violence against young people.

“The man who was against the Constitution is the one in charge,” he added.

Mwangi accused the President of failing to uphold the Constitution and said Kenyans were increasingly unsafe in public spaces and in their homes.

“Ruto is defiling our Constitution,” he said, demanding that the President resign.

“If he can't protect our lives and manage our resources well, we are asking that he resign,” he added.

Former Chief Justice and the first to serve under the 2010 Constitution, Willy Mutunga, warned Kenyans against underestimating the power of those in Government, saying political power, money and control over instruments of violence could be used to suppress dissent.

“Don't underestimate these people in power. They have money, and own violence,” Mutunga said. “If you want a Kenya that is free, don't underestimate these people.”

He also questioned the commitment of some political leaders to constitutionalism, saying those celebrating the Constitution were, in practice, frustrated by its requirements.

“Those having a Katiba at 16 celebration at Kenyatta International Convention Centre (KICC) find the Constitution very inconvenient. They don't obey court orders,” he said.

He said Kenya's constitutional crisis was partly a leadership problem, arguing that having a progressive Constitution was insufficient if those entrusted with public office were unwilling to implement it.

“We should not complain when the Constitution is not implemented because we don't have leadership that can implement it,” Mutunga said.

He urged voters to scrutinise the credentials of candidates in the next elections, including their position on Kenya's economic sovereignty and relations with international financial institutions.

“Let's elect people who can talk to IMF and World Bank so that we can get reprieve and lower the cost of living,” he said, warning that electing leaders he described as “puppets of foreign powers” would leave Kenyans trapped in the same cycle of economic hardship.

Singer and activist Reuben Kigame said Katiba Day should also be a reminder of the sacrifices made by Kenyans who fought for constitutional freedoms.

“It is a day to celebrate those who fought for the Constitution,” Kigame said, noting that some Kenyans had been tortured and others sacrificed their lives in the struggle for a more democratic country.

He condemned the continued abduction and detention of young people involved in civic activism.

“I reject the continued mistreatment of our young people, abductions and holding incommunicado of people who want a better country,” Kigame said.

“Anyone who is not interested in the rule of law and constitutionalism should not hold office."

According to former Law Society of Kenya president Faith Odhiambo, there are clear signs of "mutilation" of the constitution by those at the helm of the country's leadership.

"We have three arms of government, yet we cannot say that we have realised their independence," she expressed, pointing a finger at Parliament as the weak link.

"In this dispensation, there are 30 laws that have been declared unconstitutional. They came from the executive and were passed in Parliament, where we have lawmakers that are supposed to look into and abide by the Constitution," she stated.

For Bunge la Mwananchi, the 2010 Constitution's promise should be measured against tangible outcomes rather than anniversary celebrations.

The group identified four fundamental principles that it said should guide the assessment of the Constitution's 16-year journey: placing young people at the centre of governance, respect for the rule of law, economic revival and strengthening devolution.

“It is a day that Kenyans are going to have an honest discourse to deliberate on whether we have ensured that the four principles have been achieved,” said Nicholas  Galgalo, Bunge la Mwananchi president.

For them, Katiba Day was therefore less about celebrating the document and more about asking whether those entrusted with power have honoured it.