Nyumba,
As our leaders try to shove the East African Federation dream down our guts, are we actually going to benefit or to lose? Personally, I think the idea is ill advised, and should be killed at the earliest opportunity. This is because all the three countries are chasing different economic and political paths. Kenya of course is seen as the monster that is waiting to devour her partners. As a result our brothers and sisters in Tanzania have become unjustifiably aggressive. Xenophobia is at its highest level, not just against Kenyans, but other East Africans as well.

The only solution for this emergent xenophobia from our Tanzanian neighbors is to wake up to the reality that the E. African federation is an illusion and deal with Tanzania at formal levels, just like the way we deal with Ethiopia or Sudan. As the Kikuyus will say “kũbatithagio ũrĩa wĩĩrirĩĩte” (only those who have accepted the doctrine get baptized). For her own economic interests, Kenya should enter into partnership with Uganda and other willing countries for the mutual benefits of all involved.
My view is that Tanzania is fighting the South African economic war by proxy. As we all know, S. African monopolistic companies have had no success in Kenya as in other East African countries. It also happen that Kenya is a prize they are salivating for, not just because it is the largest economy in the region, but also because it can stand on its own, then it will become a front for competition. Kenya and Tanzania have always had their differences, remember those times when there rhetoric of man-eat-man society and man-eat-nothing society? How comes that there was no Xenophobia then? Again you might guess—the hand of South African. How come the Tanzania Xenophobia comes at the same time that South African Xenophobia has increased?

In addition, the Stability in Tanzania is overplayed. Like the S. Africans, they try to deny the existence of tribalism. Yet they do talk of the Chagga’s enterprising spirit, or Kikuyus of TZ, the Wamachinga hawkers, the Wahaya and prostitution, and the likes. Talk of tribal-less community! In addition, they do not have a vibrant multiparty system to write home about. The structures of CCM of Nyerere’s era are still intact, and those who challenge them are dealt with ruthlessly. Ask the Zanzibaris. That the Tanzanians are making a demand for democracy in Kenya, how laughable? It is Kenyans who should be telling Watu wa bongo to straighten up their political system before we enter into any political agreement. How can we be enjoined if we have structures that are as different as heaven and earth?

I am happy that South African was finally able to break the yoke of apartheid, but I am not happy with their imperialistic agenda. They have this idea that they are the light of the rest of Africa. Mbeki’s “African Renaissance” is based theory of on the diffusion of the South African models into the rest of Africa. For this reason, South Africa is ready to ‘destabilize’ and ‘undermine’ other countries that stand in their way. They hoodwink the world with sounding phrases like “the home of Madiba” “the icon of democracy’, ‘the peaceful country’, ‘political stability’, ‘united country’ and the likes. This creates the impression that South Africa is the gateway to the rest of Africa, especially the East and Central Africa. The clamor to have AU office move to S. Africa from Ethiopia, and the hijacking of the EASSY-project are just some of the examples.

That tribalism is a problem I cannot deny, but I will also say that tribalism is not as deep as it seems, it only manifest itself in political cycles, especially at the elite level. The ordinary mwananchi, unless incited, does not harbor ill feeling towards other wananchi. It is just out of their ignorance because of misinformation or lack of proper contact with other ethnic groups. In any case, our youth’s inter-ethnic mixing is soon debunking the tribal incompatibility myth. Slowly, we are smothering this monster of negative ethnicity, but our charged political climate shoves these positive developments under the carpet.

Tanzanians think that they are getting a raw deal from Kenya, but I think that Kenya is getting NO deal at all. I have heard countless complaints about Kenyan take over of Tanzanian economy, but I have not heard a whisper about the South African takeover of Tanzania economy, Why?

Nyumba, I beg you to say NO to the East African federation

I think am overwhealed about the Pron's and Con's of having the community.

So shoul we unite, will the poor ones benefit or just only capitalist!

Mpigakura,
Only the capitalists will benefit, and what is worse, like papa Daad has pointed out, most of these capitalists are not East African. Whether they are S Africans or the British, we small men will be going for each other jugular when the real playesr will be patting each other on the back.

Still, I think uniting will be a terrible mistake. Only two days ago, a Tanzania friend told me that the Tanzanians are saying 'Tukiungana hawa Wakenya watatupali" I beleive no meaningful unity can be achieved in the midst of such deep mistrust.