EAC assembly finally accepts rotation sitting

Rwanda President Paul Kagame shares a light moment with his Tanzanian counterpart, Jakaya Kikwete (2L), during celebrations to mark Rwanda’s 50 years of Independence at the Amahoro National Stadium in Kigali yesterday.

By ZEPHANIA UBWANI

Monitor Correspondent
Arusha.

The storm is over. The East African Legislative Assembly (Eala) will now hold its regular sessions on rotational basis in all the five partner states.

Only two of the six parliamentary sessions held in a year, will take place in Arusha, the EAC headquarters, where Eala has its purposely built chambers opened late last year.

The other four sessions will take place in the capitals or any designated places in Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda, the five states that make up the East African Community. “This decision will bring unity in EA and is a victory to the House,” Mr Peter Mathuki, an Eala member from Kenya , said after a motion he tabled before the House in favour of the rotation sailed through. He regretted that the motion he tabled early this week divided members of the House, leading to boycotts of the sessions on two consecutive days.

The motion was initially to be tabled on Tuesday but was shut down by the Speaker, Ms Margaret Zziwa, who insisted that her office should have been notified earlier to formalise the request on Order Paper.
This led to a walk-out by Rwandan MPs.

After consultations with the Speaker’s office, however, MPs from Tanzania walked out on its second tabling, protesting against what they described as the ‘humiliation’ of the Speaker by legislators who marched out the previous day.

Mr Mathuki argued that the walk-outs were a healthy situation for democracy. He, however, stressed that the process of resolving disagreements should be done “in a civilised manner’’. On the same day, the newly-appointed Rwandan minister for EAC Affairs, Ms Jacquiline Muhongaire, was sworn in. She takes over from Ms Monique Mukaruliza, who was the first EAC minister from Rwanda.