Article 54: Disqualifications for membership
Chapter VI - Parliament
1
No person shall be qualified to be elected as a member of the House of Representatives -
a
if he is a citizen of a country other than Malta having become such a citizen voluntarily or is under a declaration of allegiance to such a country;
b
save as otherwise provided by Parliament, if he holds or is acting in any public office or is a member of the armed forces of the Government of Malta;
c
if he is a party to, or a partner with unlimited liability in, a contract with the Government of Malta, or if he is a member, director, manager or officer of a company of which he beneficially owns more than one per centum of the issued share capital, being a party to such a contract, and has not, within one month before the date of election, published in the Gazette a notice setting out the nature of any such contract, and his interest, or the interest of any such company, therein;
d
if he is an undischarged bankrupt, having been adjudged or otherwise declared bankrupt under any law in force in Malta;
e
if he is interdicted or incapacitated for any mental infirmity by a court in Malta, or is otherwise determined in Malta to be of unsound mind;
f
if he is under sentence of death imposed on him by any court in Malta or is serving a sentence of imprisonment (by whatever name called) exceeding twelve months imposed on him by such a court or substituted by competent authority for some other sentence imposed on him by such a court, or is under such a sentence of imprisonment the execution of which has been suspended;
g
if he holds or is acting in any office the functions of which involve any responsibility for, or in connection with, the conduct of any election of members of the House of Representatives or the compilation or revision of any electoral register;
h
if he is disqualified for membership of the House of Representatives by or under any law for the time being in force in Malta by reason of his having been convicted of any offence connected with the election of members of the House of Representatives.
2
For the purposes of paragraph (f) of sub-article (1) of this article -
a
two or more sentences that are required to be served consecutively shall be regarded as separate sentences if none of them exceeds twelve months, but if any one of them exceeds twelve months they shall be regarded as one sentence; and
b
no account shall be taken of a sentence of imprisonment imposed as an alternative to or in default of the payment of a fine.
3
A person shall not be regarded as holding, or acting in, a public office for the purpose of paragraph (b) of sub-article (1) of this article -
a
if he is on leave of absence pending relinquishment of a public office;
b
if he is a teacher in the public service who is not prevented from the practice of his profession or calling by the terms of his employment.
Amendment History
1996-08-01 - Amendment regarding disqualifications for holders of public office
Legal Reference: Act XXIV of 1996
Notes
This article establishes the disqualifications for membership in the House of Representatives, including citizenship conflicts, public office positions, contractual relationships with the government, and legal incapacities.