Reports Leo Odera Omolo.
The East African Community secretariat is in the process of drafting a new constitution to guide the roll out of the proposed political federation.
Information emerging from the Arusha based secretariat says the EAC plans to table its recommendations for the proposed constitution at the forthcoming November East African heads of states summit.
“Governments across the region have been slow in setting in motion structures for the political federation,” says the report.
“While we are talking of a political federation in the EAC, we are bushy fighting on ethnic ground in our countries,” a Kenyan outspoken MP Martha Karua told members of the East African Legislative Assembly during their just concluded symposium held in Arusha two weeks ago.
The Kenya legislator added,” There are fears that will spill into region thereby slowing the integration process.”
The drafting new constitution for the proposed federation is expected o start once the East African Monetary Union protocol is signed and ratified by all the member countries of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi.
“National political parties are also said to be mum over political integration. look at their manifestos, there is nowhere were they mention political integration,” said Ms Beatrice Kiraso,th EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of the back tracking political federation at the EAC headquarters.
She added that a genuine political federation cannot run along side with five different constitutions.”
It has also been reported that the EAC has adopted a draft protocol or good governance seeking to push for democratic elections and peaceful transitions potentially saving the region from recurring political instability.
The five countries have agreed to put in place mechanisms for the appointment of electoral management team to curb rising allegations of bungled elections.
Recent elections, for example in Kenya and Uganda, were marred by the allegations of partisan electoral commissions.
If passed by the East African Legislative Assembly, the draft sanctions regional citizens to question the manner I which each person are appointed.
All member states will also be required to establish adequate legal and institutional framework in finance management system to combat corruption across the region.
In the year 2010, Kenya Anti-Corruption Commission said it was handling cases worth USD 0.3 billions lost through graft annually highlighting the uphill task it faces in holding to account more involve in graft. The stolen money was estimated to be able to run parliament, the education and medical services ministries for a year, excluding the hundreds of millions spent on investigations by the anti-corruption commission.
Uganda had set aside a budget of USD 120 million to fight corruption figure that shot up to more than USD 217 million with the difference ending up in Ministers pockets. Such cases will now be taken and tried at the regional level.
Each country, according to an article appearing I the current edition of the influential weekly, the EASTAFRICAN will now follow uniform mechanisms for appointment of judges to promote a fair justice system across the region, while in earlier cases where presidents would appoint judges.
Kenya has already fallen into line with the public vetting of its current Chief Justice Willy Mutunga and the Deputy Chief Justice Nancy Baraza.
Members agreed to establish regional mechanism for election observers and evaluation when member countries would ply a regional role during elections in the region.
The much flawed elections in Kenya in 2007 was the source mayhem that claimed the lives of close to 1500 people and saw close to 350,000 internally displaced people violently evicted from their homes and thrown into temporary refugee camps in their own country.
The East African Court of Justice will also have a mandate to handle cases related to human rights abuse earlier deferred to the Hague based ICC.
The Deputy Secretary General In Charge f political federation at the Arusha based EAC secretariat Ms Beatrice Kiraso was recently quoted as having urged EAC member countries to finalize the process of extending jurisdictions of the East African Curt of Justice.
“We cannot continue to look to the ICC when we have the EACJ, which can serve as a middle ground between national political judiciary mechanisms and international ones,” Ms Kiraso said during a ministerial meeting in Zanzibar.
Ends