The Speaker of Parliament, Jacob Oulanyah has called on legislators to work towards faster integration of the East Africa Community.
Oulanyah who was launching the Parliamentary Forum on East African Affairs on Thursday, 23 September 2021 said that MPs need to employ all necessary means to support the EAC.
“The history of the Community is not old and we are not inventing a new wheel. We have been dragging our feet on issues surrounding the integration of the community for so long,” he said.
Oulanyah urged the MPs that the forum membership is voluntary calling for commitment from them.
“You must be passionate, dedicating your energy and having a shared view of the integration; this is no forum for you to relax,” he added.
The Speaker added that, ‘while we are busy exercising bureaucracy, the criminals across the region have already federated and have an impeccable criminal organisation structure’.
“Regional police infrastructure has to be put in place to chase criminals who already have structures to conduct their business,” he added.
Oulanyah added that the forum is meant to support the process and existence of the Community fostering coordination across the region and working together to galvanise the processes of the federation.
“We should target topical issues of trade bargains, mobility for region citizens and security issues,” he said adding that, ‘the forum should isolate these issues and set in motion discussions on solutions with Members of Parliament in the other member states’.
Oulanyah further called upon the MPs to be personally motivated to move this federation and the togetherness of the East Africa Federation.
The Chairperson of the Forum, Hon. Dicksons Kateshumbwa promised to spare all the time needed with other forum members to work around solving the issues of integration in the East Africa.
“We will use this platform to reach out to fellow MPs in other partner states especially in information sharing so that we can generate ideas to support the East African Community and all its organs,” he said.
The forum is an inclusive platform for policy makers to foster effective and active engagement in the East African integration process with a focus on the needs of the people of the region.