Kenya Wants More Regional Bloc Organs

(The East African)--Kenya appears determined to have the proposed East African Community complex that will also host the secretariat built outside Tanzania.

This is even though Vice President Kalonzo Musyoka last week called Tanzania’s President Jakaya Kikwete to assure him that EAC Minister Amason Jeffah Kingi’s hint to that effect was not the official standpoint — only to have Mr Kingi turn around and flatly contradict him.

The EastAfrican has learnt that Kenyan officials are in overdrive to win the support of the bloc’s newest members, Rwanda and Burundi, to amend the EAC Treaty to allow the Secretariat to come to either Nairobi, Kigali or Bujumbura. ‘Times have changed; Kenya is no longer afraid of Tanzania enlisting the services of Uganda to defeat its wishes, a source at the Ministry of East Africa Co-operation told The EastAfrican. ‘The giant is slowly waking up.’

And in anticipation of stiff challenge from Tanzania, Kenyan bureaucrats are busy drafting executive briefs to be handed over to President Mwai Kibaki before the next Head of State Summit in Arusha towards the end of April. ‘I foresee the matter being settled politically,’ said the source, citing the ongoing Migingo Island saga. According to Kenya’s Minister for East Africa Co-operation, Jeffah Kingi EAC organs need to be spread out to ensure equity, visibility and also address security concerns.

The EAC, adds the minister, should borrow a leaf from the African and European Union models, whose organs are decentralised through partner states from the country hosting the headquarters. The EU’s headquarters are in Brussels while its organs are spread out across European member states. The AU secretariat is in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, but its parliament sits in South Africa. ‘EAC organs like the Court of Justice and Legislative Assembly, should be relocated to other member States,’ said the source.

The EAC has seven organs: the Heads of State Summit, the Council of Ministers, the Co-ordination Committee, Sectoral Committees, the East Africa Legislative Assembly, the East African Court of Justice, and the Secretariat. Besides the organs, there are a number of autonomous institutions, including the Nile Basin Project, Inter Universities Council of East Africa and the Lake Victoria Environmental Programme, East African Community Civil Aviation Safety and Security Oversight Agency and the East African Development Bank. Kenya only hosts the Lake Victoria Environmental Programme in Kisumu. The rest are shared between Uganda and Tanzania with the latter hosting the prime organs, including the East Africa Legislative Assembly, the EAC Court of Justice and the Secretariat.

Last month, Mr Kingi called for the construction of the new complex to be put on hold, a move that caught Tanzania off guard. It also sparked speculation of Kenya’s real intentions. Arguing its case, Kenya stated that Arusha has since lost significance, especially with Rwanda and Burundi coming on board. In addition, Southern Sudan and the DRC are planning to join the bloc. It doesn’t make sense to continue clinging unto Arusha as the centre of the region, he said.

Tanzania’s EAC Minister Diodorus Kamala says plans to derail building of the complex are unacceptable as everything is going on as scheduled. The EAC headquarters status and location are enshrined in the Treaty establishing the regional body, he was quoted as saying in Tanzania press, now abuzz with the matter. However, he added, partner states can propose the amendment of the Treaty, and such changes can only be adopted after a consensus is reached by all the member states.

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