Ruto says Kenyans need to relook the 2010 Constitution

President William Ruto arrives for Katiba Day celebrations at KICC in Nairobi on August 28, 2026. [PCS]

President William Ruto has said that a number of areas in the 2010 Constitution need to be relooked at 16 years after its promulgation.

While he was of the opinion that the Judiciary had done well under the new constitutional dispensation, Ruto said frequent injunctions were also frustrating government programmes

"While Kenyans can challenge matters relating to Governance in courts, there's a need to relook at the impact of a few individuals stopping implementation of certain constitutional rights," he said.

He said the Judiciary may want to think about balancing the right of every citizen to challenge whatever is being done against the right of others who believe that that right should be achieved.

Ruto insisted that it was a conversation for Kenyans to have, even as he clarified that he did not think it would amount to changing the Constitution.

The Kenya Kwanza administration has faced a lot of litigation in court due to some of its policies that threatened their implementation, including the transition from National Hospital Insurance Fund (NHIF) to the Social Health Authority (SHA).

Other court orders that have temporarily stopped programmes include the new university education funding model, the Housing levy and even the construction of an Ebola quarantine centre most recently among others.

President William Ruto, Deputy President Kithure Kindiki and other leaders during Katiba Day celebrations at KICC in Nairobi on August 28, 2026. [PCS]

The President challenged the Judiciary arm of Government to factor in the consequences of their decisions while interpreting the law.

"How do we ensure that checks and balances remain instruments of accountability rather than pathways to institutional gridlock?" he said.

The 2/3rds Gender rule in the Constitution has remained elusive since 2010. On June 30th, the cabinet was declared unconstitutional and the President was given 120 days to reconstitute his cabinet.

The President said that the journey to achieve the gender threshold is still on. "Have we made progress progressively? Yes, we have.

Have we done 100 per cent? No. Some of it is work in progress and its attainment may not happen today," he said. Numerous attempts have been made to achieve it, the latest going through the 10-point agenda with no progress. Ruto admitted there were gaps in achieving the threshold, as he made a commitment

"I think I can do something not just about the 2/3rds Gender rule but also the Constitutionality of our cabinet. I have some homework to do." said Ruto.

Violation of the right to demonstrate and picket has also been a major sticking point under his administration, and the President acknowledged the central role of criticism and dissent in any democracy, insisting that the right to protest must be protected.

Former Chief Justice Willy Mutunga during Katiba Day celebrations at Jeevanjee Gardens in Nairobi on August 27, 2026. [Boniface Okendo, Standard]

"No Kenyan should lose their life, liberty or dignity merely for criticising the Government, expressing an unpopular opinion or participating in peaceful demonstrations," said Ruto.

He regretted the abductions, killings and maiming that have characterized all the protests under his administration.

"We cannot honor the Constitution by looking away from such allegations," said Ruto.

However, he was clear that while the right to peaceful protest was enshrined in the Constitution, there was a need to distinguish between a citizen exercising their right and criminals.

He ordered for a thorough, independent and transparent investigation into every credible allegation of human rights violations adding that people found culpable should be held accountable in accordance with the law.

The subject of amending the Constitution was revived in the panel discussions held in the symposium at KICC.

Previous attempts to amend the Constitution, like the Building Bridges Initiative, spectacularly failed and former Attorney General Githu Muigai argued that there is a need for change since the Constitution "was no longer serving the country correctly".

Citing the example of power sharing through 'nusu mkate', Githu said that the country needed to adopt the Bomas draft to solve the subject of winner-takes-all currently existing.

"The Bomas Constitution was a power-sharing Constitution. It had the Prime Minister, it had deputy Prime Ministers and it had other parts to keep the nation together," said Githu.

Rev Mutava Musyimi said that there was a need to re-look at how cities are governed. "Nairobi, and I would add Mombasa, probably need to be looked at differently from other counties," Mutava said.

Independence of constitutional commissions like the National Cohesion and Integration Commission NCIC which has come into sharp focus from Kenyans in the recent days, was also canvassed with Attorney General Dorcas Oduor saying that while they are independent, they execute their mandate interdependently with other institutions.

"We must always endeavor to build a culture with which institutions are sufficiently independent to discharge their mandate fearlessly while being sufficiently interconnected to make the Constitutional system work effectively," she said.

She questioned why some independent institutions were moving to the courts to interpret their mandate while it is clearly spelt out in the Constitution. She also invited Kenyans to begin asking serious questions about the 16 years of Constitution implementation.

"If the Constitution remains impressive on paper but does not translate to the lived experience of citizens, then our Constitutional project remains incomplete," said Oduor.

The President also hailed the Devolution architecture as it is currently in the Constitution, as one of the gains made sixteen years down the line.

In the Katiba awards conferred yesterday, Chief Justice emeritus Willy Mutunga was awarded for his role in multiparty democracy, law reforms and for his works as Kenya's first Chief Justice under the new Constitution.