illegally, having pledged allegiance to the United States of America in 1990, it was revealed yesterday.

Bermuda's Constitution says that anyone who has pledged allegiance to a foreign power is not eligible to be elected to the House of Assembly.

Dr. Brown, who admitted to The Royal Gazette yesterday that he pledged allegiance to the United States when he obtained his citizenship there five years ago, appears to be ineligible to take his seat when the House meets again on Friday.

And since he was apparently ineligible to run when he won a seat in Warwick West for the Progressive Labour Party in 1993, his seat could be declared vacant and a by-election called.

"I knew that this problem could be raised as a technicality'', Dr. Brown said yesterday. "If it is required, or if it is determined that I can only serve in the Bermudian Parliament by resigning from my US citizenship, then that's an easy decision for me.'' Dr. Brown, 49, said he knew about Section 30 of the Bermuda Constitution Order 1968, but a lawyer advised him it was not an issue.

"I thought that since it didn't disqualify (the Hon.) Mike Winfield (from sitting in the Senate), that it wouldn't disqualify me,'' Dr. Brown said.

However, Mr. Winfield holds Canadian citizenship as well as Bermudian status because he was born in Canada, not because he pledged allegiance to Canada.

Similarly, a Bermudian who also held American citizenship would still be eligible to sit in Parliament, but only provided they obtained their citizenship through birth, rather than by an oath of allegiance.

Section 30(1)(a) of the Constitution reads: "No person shall be qualified to be appointed as a Senator or elected as a member of the House of Assembly who is, by virtue of his own act, under any acknowledgement of allegiance, obedience or adherence to a foreign power or state.'' Dr. Brown, who returned to Bermuda from California in 1992 after practising medicine in Los Angeles for many years, said he sought and obtained American citizenship in 1990 so that he would be eligible to sit on the board of Howard University, his alma mater.

Until then, he had worked in the US with a green card.

Because Howard held a television licence, Dr. Brown learned he could only sit on the board if he was an American citizen.

"My desire to serve was so strong that I would have become a German,'' he said.

Dr. Brown said he would see whether someone "wants to make an issue'' out of his obtaining American citizenship.

Speaker of the House the Hon. Ernest DeCouto is likely to take note of Dr.

Brown's admission, if not the Attorney General.

Dr. Brown, who is Shadow Minister of Youth and Sport, opened Bermuda Healthcare Services in Paget in 1990 and co-founded the weekly newspaper The Bermuda Times in 1987.

In his first run for elected office on October 5, 1993, he edged out veteran United Bermuda Party MP and former Premier the Hon. Sir John Sharpe, joining Health and Social Services Minister the Hon. Quinton Edness as one of the constituency's two MPs.

It was not clear yesterday whether Dr. Brown became aware of Sec tion 30 of the Constitution before the election, or after it.

Dr. Ewart Brown