Membership
The Senate consisted of 30 members. 15 member were elected by the lower chamber, the House of Representatives, using the proportional representation system, each MP having a single transferable vote. The other 15 members were appointed by the Governor-General of Ceylon on advice of the Prime Minister and generally consisted of distinguished individuals. The Senators were known as "Elected Senators" and "Appointed Senators" respectively.
The minimum age for membership of the Senate was 35 and members of the House of Representatives weren't allowed to be members of the Senate. At least two government ministers had to be Senators. No more than two Senators could be Parliamentary Secretaries (deputy ministers).
The normal term of office of a Senator was six years. One third of the Senate (five elected and five appointed) retired every two years. Retiring Senators were eligible for re-election or re-appointment. If a Senator resigned, died or was otherwise removed from office, their replacement, elected or appointed, would serve the remainder of their term of office.
Read more about this topic: Senate Of Ceylon
Famous quotes containing the word membership:
“The two real political parties in America are the Winners and the Losers. The people don’t acknowledge this. They claim membership in two imaginary parties, the Republicans and the Democrats, instead.”
—Kurt Vonnegut, Jr. (b. 1922)