EA political parties urged to foster regional integration

Political parties in East Africa have been urged to promote regional integration.

Prime Minister Raila Odinga also asked the parties to form regional units based on ideologies rather than personality-based national outfits.

“We must work towards party collaboration across national boundaries to realise our objectives. No nation, let alone any political party, is an island in today’s global world,” said Mr Odinga.

The Prime Minister made the remarks at the Regional Meeting of Political Parties in the East African Community in Nairobi on Thursday.

Mr Odinga, who is also the Orange Democratic Movement leader, emphasized the need for the parties to capture in their manifestoes the regional integration agenda.

“Just as the East African Community must embrace political parties, so must political parties embrace the integration process,” he said.

The Prime Minister blamed the founding fathers of African independence of failing to uphold democratic principles that the constitutions provided.

“After independence, the founding fathers of African independence began to argue that multipartyism — the Westminster style — was alien to African tradition,” he reminded the delegates.

EAC member states, he added, now had an opportunity to reverse the trend of authoritarianism and embrace multipartyism in a bid to lift their citizens out of poverty.

Countries represented at the two-day conference are Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.