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The Assembly yesterday moved a Resolution to bid farewell to the outgoing Secretary General of the EAC, Hon. Amb. Dr Richard Sezibera for a job well done.
The Resolution moved by Hon. AbuBakr Ogle and seconded by Hon. Abdullah Mwinyi, recognised the Secretary General for the great service rendered during his tenure of service to the Community.
The Resolution which received support from the whole House, cited a number of achievements in the programs and projects of the EAC during the five year period (2011-2016). Among the achievements are the recent introduction of the international EAC e-Passport, which the Resolution terms a critical milestone in the integration dispensation.
The Resolution also takes cognisance of the fact that Hon. Amb. Dr Sezibera’s tenure saw the conclusion and ratification of the Monetary Union, which is the third pillar of integration. It also cites Hon. Amb. Dr Sezibera’s key role in spearheading the granting of financial and administrative autonomy to the EALA and the EACJ, thus laying the foundation to commence on various amendments of the Treaty and the relevant EAC Rules and Regulations.
On matters of trade, the mover said the EAC Secretary General had sustained campaigns to ensure the realisation of the Single Customs Territory (SCT) and that it had duly paid off. Also laudable, a section of the Resolution avers, is the EAC’s infrastructure programme which is set to spur development in the region apart from other parts of the continent in terms of competitiveness thus laying the Standard Railway Gauge and making unprecedented advances in investment of energy.
In order to ensure people centeredness, the Secretary General was instrumental in establishing and sustaining the quarterly Secretary General’s forum with the Private Sector.
In justifying the Resolution, Hon. AbuBakr Ogle hailed the Secretary General for the positive areas of integration but also added there were challenges as well during his tenure.
He remarked that the incoming Secretary General was taking over at a critical time for the Community.
Contributing to the debate, Hon. Peter Mathuki said the outgoing EAC boss had made significant contribution towards strengthening of the integration process. He remarked that the addition of the Republic of South Sudan in to the bloc was a key deliverable that was facilitated during the tenure of the outgoing Secretary General.
“We need to appreciate some of the facts while understanding that in any given scenario, one can encounter obstacles during the tour of duty”, Hon. Mathuki said.
Hon. Shyrose Bhanji noted that during the tenure of Amb. Sezibera, many deliverables were realised. We have seen the reduction of NTBs and the Single Customs Territory (SCT) is also a reality. “We are also thankful for the developments such as the One Stop Border Post (OSBP) which have led to increase in Intra-EAC Trade. We are thankful to Hon. Dr Sezibera and his team”, she added.
“I want to assure him that we shall soldier on until we realise the objectives of the EAC. We shall definitely meet again in Arusha, Kigali or elsewhere in the region when we have a borderless EAC,” she said.
Hon. Martin Ngoga referred to Hon. Amb, Dr Sezibera’s tenure as one marked by great achievements.
“He has been a law maker, a Minister in the Government of Rwanda and a diplomat in his past service before coming to the EAC. He left great achievements elsewhere in public service no wonder his achievements as Secretary General of the EAC”, he said.
“We expect that the in-coming successor shall also take the Community to another level. It is our collective duty and responsibility to support the Office bearer,” Hon. Ngoga added.
Hon. Margaret Nantongo Zziwa said during the tenure of Hon. Dr Sezibera, the Members had realised improved welfare. She remarked that the challenges notwithstanding, the achievements of the Secretary General were laudable.
Hon. Abdullah Mwinyi and Hon. Dr Odette Nyiramilimo heaped praises on Dr Sezibera for the sterling job he had done for the Community. “The role of been Secretary General is extremely challenging. One must balance interest of the Community and have deep understanding of needs of Partner States,” they said.
Hon. Dora Byamukama congratulated the Republic of Rwanda for nominating Hon. Amb. Dr Richard Sezibera and said he had brought honour to the Partner State and the region.
Last week, Hon. Amb. Dr Sezibera addressed the House where he delivered the score-card of achievements during his tenure as the bloc’s Secretary General.
Amb. Dr Richard Sezibera whose tour of duty at the EAC comes to an end on April 26th, 2015 has had a successful career in public service as a Physician, Minister in the Government of Rwanda and as a Member of Rwanda’s Transitional Parliament. He has also served in the Army and as a diplomat.
At the 17th Ordinary Summit of the EAC Heads of State, the Heads of State appointed Mr Liberat Mfumukeko, the outgoing EAC Deputy Secretary General, Finance and Administration as the new Secretary General of the Community with effect from April 26th, 2016.
The Treaty of the EAC empowers the Secretary General to be the head of the Secretariat, and Accounting Officer. He is the Secretary of the Summit of EAC Heads of State and may carry out such other duties as conferred upon him by the Treaty.
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The East African Legislative Assembly has proposed enactment of an omnibus law to harmonise national laws appertaining to the Community and to institute an administration law for the Common Market Protocol.
The Assembly is of the view such a move shall cure, existing challenges of harmonisation of Partner State laws appertaining to the Community. At the same time, the Assembly wants the Council of Ministers to direct the Sectoral Council on Legal and Judicial Affairs to hold regular meetings and to prioritize harmonisation of laws for EAC in order facilitate integration within the set time frames.
In order to meaningfully facilitate co-operation in legal and judicial affairs as provided for under Article 126 of the Treaty, EALA urges EAC Council of Ministers to expedite implementation of the entire Article which obliges Partner States to harmonise legal training and certification; encourage standardisation of judgments of courts within the Community as well as in establishing common syllabus for the training of lawyers.
Late yesterday, EALA approved the Report of the Committee on Legal Rules and Privileges on the oversight activity on the harmonisation of national laws in the EAC context. The Report presented to the House by Hon. Dora Byamukama on behalf of the Chair of the Committee, Hon. Peter Mathuki, follows an oversight activity carried out by the Committee in February 22- 26, 2016.
Chapter 24 of the Treaty provides for co-operation in Legal and Judicial Affairs. Specifically, Article 126 (2) (b) of the Treaty provides that “Partner States shall through their appropriate national institutions take all necessary steps to harmonise all their national laws appertaining to the Community”.
In line with that Treaty provision, EAC Partner States established a sub-committee on the approximation of national laws in the EAC context.
During the oversight activity, the Committee was informed that Partner States are at different stages of implementation of the directives of the Council of Ministers on harmonisation on national laws. It further observed that Partner States were slow when it comes to amending laws to comply with the directive of the Council of Ministers pertaining to harmonisation of national laws. Further on, the criteria used and timelines for harmonisation of laws is also unclear.
The Committee cites a number of challenges including frequent changes in the membership of the Task Force, conflicting commitments of members of the Task Force as well as different legal systems. In addition, the slow pace in the implementation of the harmonisation agenda at national level and the lack of monitoring mechanisms to ensure Partner States comply with the adopted approximation proposals are also cited.
During debate time, Hon. Judith Pareno said the activity of harmonising and approximating laws was a Treaty matter and said it was important for the Community to have a system of the laws to harmonise. Hon. Shyrose Bhanji remarked that slow implementation of harmonising laws was retrogressive for integration. She asked the House to request the Council of Ministers to share with the Assembly a matrix showing progress of implementation.
“We also need a special strategy to popularise the laws passed by the Assembly to the citizens”, Hon. Bhanji said. Hon. Martin Ngoga called for a rethink of strategy in the way the Community undertakes its mandate as it advances the objectives of integration. Harmonisation of laws is just one of the ways but there are a number of things we need to do with reference to Article 126.
“Why are we not publishing East Africa Law Journals? There are over 600 laws that we need to harmonise to make EAC realise the Common Market and we must move faster,” he said. The legislator said EALA must take the lead.
“It is the Assembly’s role to make laws and we should not take back the matter to Partner States” he said. “We must reassess our mode of work”, he added.
Hon. Susan Nakawuki remarked that it was key for the harmonisation of immigration laws to be speedily undertaken. “One of the key issues we need to address is that of the yellow fever certificates and I request the Council of Ministers to inform us of the position of the Community on the matter”, Hon. Nakawuki said.
Chairperson of the Legal Rules and Privileges Committee, Hon. Peter Mathuki urged the Ministers of EAC to be in attendance during the Plenary Sitting. “The continuous absence of EAC Ministers may be another reason for the slow implementation of activities of integration”, Hon. Mathuki said. The legislator also said bureaucracies needed to be reduced.
The 3rd Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for EAC in the Republic of Uganda, Rt Hon. Kirunda Kivejinja remarked that progress on the pillars of integration were notable while, the Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, East African, Regional and International Co-operation, Hon. Dr Susan Kolimba remarked that the Council of Ministers was committed to ensuring issues brought to fore by Members are adequately addressed.
Also rising up to support the report were Hon. Joseph Kiangoi, Hon. Abdullah Mwinyi and Hon. Valerie Nyirahabineza.