This article offers a critical perspective on the making of the Kenya post-colony using the example of ‘The Kenya of the North’, a region that has been relegated to the periphery – politically, legally, economically, socially and culturally – in the building of a nation. Using northern Kenya as a case study, the paper asks whether Kenya has ever been inclusive of all its regions and peoples, and whether it has succeeded in building consensus on issues affecting all its citizens, especially in as far as the rule of law, democracy, human rights and their protection are concerned.