Abstract:
The East African Legislative Assembly (hereinafter referred to as ―Assembly‖), an organ of the East African Community (hereinafter referred to as ―Community‖) is central to the unification of the members states of the Community – one of its service delivery. This is based on its representative function which ideally should help to not only create awareness of the Community but also connect the people of the Community through the outreach activities.
The specific objectives of this study include focusing on the institutional provisions of the Assembly; the procedures followed by the Assembly in performing its legislative functions and the extent of EAC citizens‘ involvement in law creation through the Assembly between 2005 and 2015. Theory of institutionalism will be used to explain the evolution and performance of the Assembly.
Considering the envisioned political federation, the legitimacy of the Assembly is critical. The legitimacy questions arise from the lack of popular consent in the election of Assembly representatives, lack of a uniform electoral process within the member states, and the weakness in the treaty in providing for ordinary citizens participation in the integration process.
Institutions such as the East African Civil Society Organizations' Forum and the East African Business Council have the potential to encourage citizen participation but the modalities of their participation need to be made clear. In addition, the treaty needs to equip these institutions with a greater mandate in participating in integration efforts apart from the observer status given to them. The need to involve citizens in the integration process is vital and can be enhanced when the citizens are able to see that the benefits of the integration outweigh the losses. Conversely, the EAC citizens need to get rid of the ignorant and apathetic attitude that limits their involvement.
