Two short sections at the front of the Constitution set out promises that are made thousands of times a year — by Ministers, judges, members of Parliament, public servants, police officers and new citizens. They are not the same promise, and the difference reflects a genuine constitutional choice made in 1975.
Section 6 — the Declaration of Loyalty
Where a law requires a Declaration of Loyalty, section 6 prescribes its form. The person declares loyalty to the Independent State of Papua New Guinea and its People, and to the Constitution adopted by the Constituent Assembly on 15 August 1975 — expressly “as altered from time to time in accordance with its provisions” — and promises to uphold the Constitution and the laws of Papua New Guinea.
The wording opens by having the declarant say they realise fully the responsibilities to which they are committing themselves and the consequences of not living up to that Declaration. It is drafted as an acceptance of accountability, not a formality.
- Loyalty to the State and its People.
- Loyalty to the Constitution as amended from time to time — so a later valid alteration does not release you.
- A promise to uphold the Constitution and the laws.
Section 7 — the Oath (or Affirmation) of Allegiance
Where a law requires an Oath of Allegiance or Affirmation of Allegiance, section 7 prescribes the form: to well and truly serve and bear true allegiance to the Sovereign, her heirs and successors according to law. The Oath ends “SO HELP ME GOD”; the Affirmation is the identical promise without the religious form, made by promising and affirming.
The availability of an affirmation is not a technicality. Section 45 protects freedom of conscience, thought and religion, and a person cannot be required to swear a religious oath as the price of holding office or acquiring a right.
Why does the Constitution have both?
Papua New Guinea is a constitutional monarchy with a distinct constitutional identity. The Sovereign is Head of State, represented by the Governor-General. The Oath of Allegiance addresses that relationship. The Declaration of Loyalty addresses the relationship that the Constitutional Planning Committee regarded as the more important one for daily governance — the office-holder’s duty to the country, its people and its supreme law.
Note the asymmetry deliberately built into the words. The Oath is to a person and their successors. The Declaration is to a State, a People and a text — and to that text as it is lawfully changed.
Who has to make them?
Neither section imposes the requirement itself. Each says “where a law requires” the promise to be made, it takes this form. The requirement comes from elsewhere — the Constitution’s own provisions for particular offices, Schedule 3, and Acts governing the various services. In practice the Declaration, the Oath, or both are required of Ministers and other office-holders on appointment, of judges on taking office, of members of Parliament, and of members of the disciplined forces and public service on the terms their governing law sets.
What if someone refuses?
The consequence is not a criminal penalty. It is that the person does not validly enter upon the office. Where a law makes the making of a Declaration or Oath a condition of assuming office, an appointee who has not made it has not completed what the law requires, and decisions purportedly made in the office may be open to challenge.
Where conscience is the obstacle to the religious form, the affirmation is the answer, and it is a complete answer.
Because the Declaration binds the declarant to the Constitution “as altered from time to time in accordance with its provisions”, the loyalty owed follows the Constitution through lawful amendment — but only through lawful amendment. An alteration not made in accordance with section 14 is not an alteration at all.
Sources
- Constitution — ss 6, 7, 45; Schedule 3
- Organic Law on the Guarantee of the Rights and Independence of Constitutional Office-holders
Constitutional sections are amended. Before relying on anything here, read the current text: the Constitution on PacLII. If a decision matters to you, get advice — start with the Office of the Public Solicitor.