The East African Legislative Assembly (EALA) is the parliamentary institution of the East African Community (EAC).
It began operating in 2001.
Its purpose is to provide the Community with a legislative body operating at the regional level.
The present EAC has eight member states – Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, Tanzania and Uganda.
Each member state is entitled to nine elected representatives, giving EALA 72 regular members. There are also nine ex-officio members.
The ex-officio members are not elected by national parliaments. They hold their positions automatically because of the offices they occupy.
These include the minister responsible for EAC affairs from each member state, the EAC Secretary-General and the Counsel to the Community.
What does the EALA do?
Its responsibilities include passing legislation, approving the Community’s budget, considering reports from EAC institutions, debating matters concerning regional integration and overseeing the activities of the Community.
The EALA can pass Bills dealing with matters within the EAC’s responsibilities. However, a Bill does not automatically become law simply because EALA passes it. It must also receive the assent of the Heads of State. Once a Bill has been assented to and becomes an Act of the Community, it can take precedence over conflicting national legislation in areas covered by the Community.
The EALA is more than a consultative assembly but it is not equivalent to a fully sovereign national parliament.
How are EALA members chosen?
EALA members are not directly elected by the citizens of the EAC.
Each member state elects nine people to the EALA.
Those people cannot be members of a national parliament at the time of their election.
Therefore EALA members are selected through national parliamentary processes.
The precise procedures vary between member states because each national assembly determines its own electoral procedure.
What are the main weaknesses of the EALA?
The first major weakness is the indirect method of election. Citizens of member states do not vote directly for their EALA representatives. This can weaken the democratic connection between voters and the regional legislature. It also means that national political parties and national parliaments have considerable influence over who obtains a seat.
A second weakness is that EALA’s legislative authority is limited.
The Heads of State retain an important veto-like role over legislation.
A third weakness is the broader implementation problem within the EAC. Even where regional legislation and agreements exist, national governments remain responsible for implementing many of them. This can lead to delays in implementing decisions.
The EAC Council of Ministers is the central decision-making and governing organ. The EALA therefore operates within a system in which elected legislators do not control the executive machinery of the Community.
Does the EALA represent a loss of sovereignty?
Joining the EAC involves member states agreeing to exercise some aspects of their sovereign authority collectively. They have voluntarily accepted treaty obligations, regional institutions and laws that can affect national policy.
EALA legislation that has been properly enacted can take precedence over conflicting national legislation in areas falling within EAC competence.
At the same time, the EALA does not possess general authority over the domestic affairs of member states.
National governments retain sovereignty over most taxation, education, health, defence and other domestic matters.
The central weakness of the EALA are a combination of indirect elections, limited control over the executive institutions of the EAC and difficulties in ensuring implementation.
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