Reports Leo Odera Omolo.
It was revealed during the just conclude two days conference attended by delegates representing political parties in the East African Community’s partner states that a recommendation that the EALA MPs should be directly by the voters in their respective countries.
Kenya’s Assistant Minister for the East African Community Affairs Peter Munya disclosed during the press briefing that members of the East African Legislative Assembly will soon be directly elected if a proposal to amend the EAC Treaty is adopted.
A major recommendation that has been made to make the EAC stronger is to have its legislators at the EALA elected by the people in their respective countries.
“This will not only take us close to the political federation, but will also create legitimacy. It will allow the people to own the regional integration process as opposed to the current situation where political parties nominate the EALA MPs. The political parties based on their majority representation I their respective Parliament nominates and appoints the EALA MPs.
Earlier in his address the Prime Minister Raila Odinga had urged the delegates representing political parties in Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda and Rwanda to promote regional integration.
Odinga who is also the party leader of the Orange Democratic Movement also asked political parties to form regional units based on ideologies rather than personality based outfits.
The PM emphasized the need for political parties to capture in their manifestos the regional integration agenda.
“We must work together towards the collaborations across the national boundaries to realize our objectives.”No nation let alone any political party is an island in today’s global world,” said the PM.
He told the political parties in the region said to be numbering about 158 registered within the EAC member states that they must embrace the regional integration process. And at the same time they must uphold democratic principles.
Odinga blamed the founding fathers of African independence of failing for failing to uphold democratic principles that the constitutions provided.
“After independence the founding fathers of African independence began arguing that multipartyism – the West Minster style was an alien to African tradition. The EAC states, he added, now had the opportunity to reverse the trend of authoritarianism in a bid to lit their citizens out of abject poverty.
“Just as the EAC must embrace political parties, so must political parties must embrace the integration process.”
The East African Legislative Assembly sits in Arusha, Tanzania which is also the host of the EAC ‘s secretariat.
The EAC Deputy Secretary General in charge of fast tracking of the political federation Ms Beatrice Kiraso said bringing together of political parties from the EAC partner states is one step of attaining a common stand on issues affecting the regional integration process.
“The matter has come up a number of times and we hope the treaty will be amended to accommodate it,” said Ms Kiraso .
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