This, among others, calls for dialogue between senior officials of the partner states through their respective EAC ministries.
"We need an urgent solution. When we don't understand each other, we should sit down and talk", pleaded the Speaker of the East African Legislative Assembly (Eala) Martin Ngoga.
He told a hastily convened press conference at the weekend that failure by Eala to pass the annual budget for the Community was unfortunate.
"We will be in deep trouble if this continues. We should go for consensus. We are still committed to our integration agenda", he said.
He was briefing the media on last Thursday's (December 11th) drama inside the House which saw Eala failing to pass the $97.6million EAC expenditure estimates for 2020/2021 fiscal year.
The sitting which debated the delayed estimates for the current (2020/2021) financial year was abruptly adjourned for lack of quorum.
This was after four of the five MPs from Kenya ditched the virtual session and disappeared from the screens as the lawmakers were about to reach consensus on budget.
The Speaker was then forced to adjourn the sitting sine die (indefinitely), fuelling more fears on the imminent financial turmoil for the regional body.
Mr. Ngoga said he has unsuccessfully tried to reach out to the Kenyan legislators on how to resolve the matter and have the estimates passed.
He was categorical that he was not "apportioning blame" on anybody for the budget crisis, noting that he was not trying to be an alarmist.
"I am not intending to be an alarmist. But why go home (for end of year vacation) while the situation is like this"? he asked.
The EAC and its organs and institutions closed business yesterday to allow the staff to go to their homes for the end-of-year holiday.
During the period, most of the regular activities such as meetings will cease and that will last until the second week of January next year.
The Speaker could not explain if his frantic efforts to rescue the bungled budget will bear fruits in the next few days before the holidays proper begin
As the EAC staff - especially from the neighbouring countries - packed their belongings yesterday for the holiday, there was a sombre mood on their faces.
"What has happened to the budget?", they asked as they streamed out of the EAC headquarters, recalling memories of cash woes such as the salary delays.
The much awaited budget was tabled as the EAC Appropriation Bill, 2020 which is anchored on the annual expenditure estimates for the Community.
Officials of the Secretariat, the executive arm of the Community, have largely maintained silence to the crisis although equally concerned the crisis will have dire consequences for EAC operations.
When he made his maiden speech to the House on December 11th after he was sworn in as ex-officio member, the deputy Foreign Affairs minister William Ole Nasha warned about the impasse.
He cautioned that august House would set "a bad precedent" if it failed to pass the estimates, insisting that this will kill the EAC spirit.
"It would be a direct affront to the Treaty that established the EAC ", he said, also warning against any alternation of the budget estimates.
ends
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