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{
    "id": 99362,
    "url": "https://info.mzalendo.com/api/v0.1/hansard/entries/99362/?format=api",
    "text_counter": 187,
    "type": "speech",
    "speaker_name": "Mr. Kingi",
    "speaker_title": "The Minister for East African Community",
    "speaker": {
        "id": 27,
        "legal_name": "Amason Jeffah Kingi",
        "slug": "amason-kingi"
    },
    "content": " Mr. Speaker, Sir, the final question was the issue of political integration and how far we are. The journey towards the political integration is divided into steps. The first step was the Customs Union, which was launched in 2005 and became fully fledged by December last year. The second step is where we are now, namely; the common market protocol, which was signed in November and will become effective come midnight tonight. The third step will be the monetary union, which we hope will be launched in 2012. After these three pillars are put in place, then we will now be readying ourselves to embrace a political federation. However, work has already begun to prepare the East Africans to embrace a political integration. This started way back immediately the Treaty was signed in 1999, where a committee of experts was mandated to go around East African to ask East Africans two questions. One of the questions was whether East Africans are for a political federation. The second question was whether East Africans would wish to attain the political federation through a fast-tracking mechanism. I can confirm to this House that the score that was obtained from the three original countries was well beyond 60 per cent on the question as to whether East Africans want a political federation. On the question as to whether the political federation should be fast-tracked, Uganda and Kenya scored well above 50 per cent. It is only Tanzania that scored below 50 per cent. Therefore, with the kind of result, it was then decided that other than fast-tracking the attainment of a political federation, it would be better to integrate our economies first. Let us integrate economic-wise before we can begin to engage on a political federation. Recently, we have constituted a team of experts that is supposed to again go round East Africa to harvest the fears and the concerns of East Africans on the political federation. This team is supposed to report back to us with recommendations on how we are supposed to address the fears and the concerns that may impede the attainment of a political federation. Our nominees in this particular team are Dr. Mukhisa Kituyi, Dr. Oloo and Ms. Rose Waruhiu. These are the three nominees from the Republic of Kenya who are serving in this team of experts which is trying to harvest the fears and the concerns of East Africans, which may actually impede the attainment of a political federation."
}