Kalonzo calls for unbiased implementation of Constitution 16 years after promulgation

Wiper leader Kalonzo Musyoka at a past event. [File, Standard]

Wiper Patriotic Front leader Kalonzo Musyoka has called for the unbiased implementation of the 2010 Constitution, warning that Kenya risks undermining the gains of the new constitutional order through selective compliance.

Speaking on Thursday to mark the 16th anniversary of the Constitution's promulgation, Kalonzo said the country had a “first-class Constitution and second-class compliance”, accusing state institutions and leaders of failing to uphold constitutional principles.

“The document itself is not our problem. Our problem is the distance between the text we celebrate every August and the conduct we tolerate for the other eleven months,” he said.

Kalonzo, who served as Vice President when the Constitution was promulgated at Uhuru Park on August 27, 2010, said the document was the product of decades of struggle and sacrifice, particularly following the 2007-08 post-election violence.

He recalled standing alongside then-President Mwai Kibaki and former Prime Minister Raila Odinga during the historic ceremony, describing the moment as one when Kenya had finally “exhaled after holding its breath for far too long.”

The former Vice President said the Constitution's promise could only be realised if all institutions respected its provisions, regardless of political or personal interests.

He criticised what he described as selective enforcement of Chapter Six on leadership and integrity, interference with independent commissions and disregard for court orders.

“Court orders are treated as suggestions. Young Kenyans are teargassed, abducted, disappeared, shot in the leg, and some are killed, for exercising rights that Chapter Four guarantees them,” Kalonzo said.

On devolution, Kalonzo took issue with the delays in the disbursement of funds to counties, saying the delays were undermining one of the Constitution's key achievements, devolution.

He said county governments had been forced to borrow to meet obligations while waiting for funds from the national government, arguing that money allocated to counties should be released on time.

“Money owed to counties is not a favour dispensed from Nairobi. It belongs to the people of those counties,” he said.

He reiterated his support for increasing the counties' share of nationally raised revenue from the constitutional minimum of 15 per cent to 35 per cent.

On the forthcoming general elections, the Wiper leader raised concerns over the preparedness and independence of the Independent Electoral and Boundaries Commission (IEBC).

He said questions surrounding the voters' register, procurement of election technology and the constitutional timelines for the boundaries review must be addressed early to safeguard the credibility of the polls.

“An electoral commission that is independent, properly funded and demonstrably impartial is a national security requirement, not an administrative preference,” he said.

Kalonzo warned that a disputed or poorly managed election could trigger consequences extending beyond the legal and political spheres, recalling the violence that followed the disputed 2007 presidential election.

At the same time, the 2027 presidential hopeful cautioned against attempts to amend the Constitution to benefit political or elite interests.

“No man, no woman, no party and no community owns this Constitution, and none of them may water it down to fit an ambition,” Kalonzo said.

He urged young Kenyans to defend the Constitution, describing it as their inheritance and shield.