On an overcast morning in late August 2010, President Mwai Kibaki hoisted a copy of the newly promulgated Kenyan Constitution, a document that bore the aspirations of a nation yearning to finally enjoy the fruits of the struggle of its forebearers.

Its pages bore provisions that would qualify Kenya’s supreme law to be among the world’s most progressive. It guaranteed rights and freedoms that few African governments would want in the hands of their citizens. The Constitution released independent institutions from the Executive’s chokehold.