The Head of State summons, prorogues and dissolves Parliament, recommends appropriation of public money and assents bills agreed to by the Legislative Assembly converting the same into law as Acts of Parliament.

Short History

By Order in Council, the Governor General of New Zealand made the Western Samoa Legislative Assembly Regulations 1948 which revoked the Legislative Council Orders which had provided for the Legislative Council - the body through which the Foreign Powers had administered Samoa from 1920 to 1947 -and established the Western Samoa Legislative Assembly. The Regulations provided for qualifications for registration in the European rolls, how Samoan members were to be elected and the election of members to be held on April 1948 and in the same month every third year. About 95% of these Regulations are still in force being adopted as provisions of the Electoral Act 1963.

The first Legislative Assembly elected on the 3^rd April 1948 had a membership of 12 Samoan members who were all Matai title holders elected by the Fono of Faipule plus five European members elected by the European voters. The membership of the 2^nd and 3^rd Legislative Assembly elected in 1951 and 1954 respectively remained at 17, with the same composition.

The 4^th Legislative Assembly, elected in 1957 had 41 Samoan members elected from each of the 41 Territorial Constituencies, the boundaries of which were defined in the Territorial Constituencies Act plus 5 European members elected from the European Roll- The qualifications for Samoan Territorial Constituency Rolls remained the same for the Matai title holders only.

The 5^th Legislative Assembly elected in 1961 was the Legislative Assembly of the 1^st Parliament of the Independent State of Samoa; the membership remained at 41 Matai title holders elected from each of the 41 Territorial Constituencies plus 5 European members elected from the European Roll.

Two major changes were made in the composition of the Legislative Assembly by the Constitution Amendment Act 1963 by prescribing 4 of the Territorial Constituencies to be two member Territorial Constituencies raising the number of Samoan members to 45, and a relativity (European/Samoan) formula for determining the number of European members - resulting in the decrease of European members to two, a number which has remained to date.

The Electoral Act 1963 changed the name of the European Roll to the Individual Voters Roll and prescribed additional qualifications to include the children of those registered in the European Roll, children born in Samoa to non Samoan citizen fathers and naturalized Samoan citizens, while disqualifying any person who holds a matai title or married to a matai or exercising customary right or privilege to Samoan land. Thus continues an electoral system where only Samoans holding matai titles can vote while descendants of European, Chinese and Solomon Island settlers can register and votes as soon as they reach the age of 21 years.

In 1990 government introduced universal suffrage to the territorial constituencies - thus giving all Samoans age 21 and over the right to vote for the first time - while retaining the 2 separate rolls and the qualifications for territorial constituencies candidacy to registered Matais only.

The Constitution Amendment Act 1991 prescribed for following changes:
   (i)        increase in double members constituencies from 4 to 6;
   (ii)   increase in Parliamentary Term from 3 to 5 years;
   (iii)  number of Cabinet Ministers to be not fewer than 8 and not
         more than 12.

The current Legislative Assembly has 49 members; 47 being representatives of the 41 Territorial Constituencies and 2 representing the Individual Voters.

The Electorate

To date, the 2 separate Rolls still exist; the Territorial Constituencies Rolls which previously contained only matai title holders now include non matais 21 years old and over while the Individual Voters Roll contains Samoan citizens of foreign and mixed descent and their spouses and naturalised citizens.

Constituency of registration

     •   A matai registers in the Constituency in which his title exists
     or if there is more than one title, in a constituency in which
     one of those title exists.
•   A non matai may register in;
    (i)       the constituency in which the elector resides; or
    (ii)     if the elector is the spouse or parent or child or brother or sister of a Matai and such elector chooses, the constituency in which such Matai is registered.

Qualifications of Candidates

Any person registered as a elector in a Territorial Constituency who is a holder of a matai title and an electoral certificate of Identity is qualified to be a candidate for that constituency and any person registered as a voter in the Individual Voters Roll is qualified as a candidate to represent the Individual Voters.

A person is disqualified to be a candidate representing a constituency if he loses any qualifications enabling him to register in that constituency or if he has not resided in Samoa for a period equaling or exceeding 3 years. A person is disqualified for being a candidate representing the individual voters if he loses any qualification enabling him to register as an Individual Voter or if he has not resided in Samoa for a period equaling or exceeding 3 years.

Persons appointed to an overseas Foreign Affairs posting or a spouse of such person, persons who reside overseas for required medical treatment and persons required to be absent from Samoa on official duties are exempted from this provision. The residency period, which was set at 1 year in 1990, was increased to 3 years in 2000. Also disqualified are persons convicted of an offence punishable by death or imprisonment for a term of 2 years or over, within the immediately preceding 4 years or has been convicted in Samoa of a corrupt practice or is of unsound mind and is subject to an order of Medical custody or is in prison for an offence.

Vacancies

The seat of a member of Parliament becomes vacant;
   (a)   upon his death;
   (b)   if he resigns;
   (c)   if he ceases to be a citizen of Samoa;
   (d)   if on 3 consecutive sitting days he fails to attend the
          Assembly without permission of the Speaker;
   (e)   if he takes an oath or makes any declaration or
          acknowledgement of allegiance or adhesive to any foreign
          country;
   (f)    if he becomes a bankrupt;
   (g)   if he is convicted in Samoa or American Samoa of a crime
          punishable by death or imprisonment for a term of 2 years or
          over or convicted of corrupt practice;
   (h)   if he becomes a public servant;
   (i)    if on election petition the court declares his election void;
   (j)    if he becomes of unsound mind and subject to an order of
          medical custody;
   (k)   if he is guilty of conduct unbecoming a Member of Parliament
          as set out in the Parliamentary Code of Ethics;
   (1)   if he is proved to the satisfaction of a Parliamentary
          Committee to have acted for commission or other reward as
          agent for the purpose of securing purchase or acquisition of
          land by the Government.

All questions as to the right of any person to be or to remain a Member of Parliament are referred to and determined by the Supreme Court,

Parliamentary Parties

Although Political Parties were proclaimed and registered in the Register of Incorporated Societies kept by the Department of Justice since me General elections of 1976, parties were not recognised in Parliament until 1997 when provisions for Recognition of Parties and for the Leader of Opposition were written into the Standing Orders.

The Standing Orders provide that any group of members of not less than 8 shall be recognised as a party in Parliament on its leader notifying the Speaker, provided that not less than 100 registered members of that party who are registered electors and or voters affixed their signatures to the application for registration. The Speaker must be informed of the name of the Party, the identity of the leader and deputy leader, the parliamentary members and any changes and any coalition between 2 or more parties.

For parlimentary purposes:

   (a)  any member who takes the Oath of Allegiance before he is notified under a party as required by (2)(c) of this Order shall be recognised as an independent member for the duration of the parliamentary term;
   (b)  any member who ceases to be a member of a party under which he was notified as required by (2)(c) shall be recognised as an independent member for the rest of the parliamentary term.

In the period between general elections and the Assembly electing a Speaker matters specified in notification of parties maybe notified to the Clerk.

There have been no movements between parties due to the Speakers Ruling given in 1997 on the matter when two of the independent members notified the Speaker of their intentions to join the Samoa National Development Party- The Speaker gave the following ruling: 'A member remains a member of the Parliamentary Party in which he was notified for the duration of the Parliamentary Term. Any member who for some reason leaves the party under which he was notified will become an independent member for the rest of the Parliamentary Term."

The current XIV^th Parliament was sworn in on 20^th April 2006.