Student representatives have voted against the installation of a condom machine on campus after a two-hour meeting was held to discuss the matter, which has been at the centre of debate for years.
The discussion was held three weeks ago but no announcement was made about the decision, which calls for a holistic sexual health work plan focused on information, not just on condoms.
During the meeting, University Students' Council (KSU) president Carl Grech argued against the proposal, saying that condoms were already available just outside University.
He also said that having a campus pharmacy would be a better idea but was reminded that the planning authority would need to approve such a proposal beforehand.
When contacted yesterday he said students had decided to "close off the issue once and for all" and added that the work plan to be proposed would guarantee maximum exposure because it would be developed with all student organisations.
The issue was discussed during the KSU's social policy commission meeting - a regular appointment which brings together representatives from all campus student organisations.
When asked for a copy of the minutes of the meeting, KSU said it was unable to send them. However, it gave details about the vote and said that student organisation Move's proposal was shot down by a secret vote, with 17 bodies voting against the motion, eight voting in favour and two abstaining.
Move then proposed that the condom machine be set up until the University was granted the permit for a pharmacy. However, this too was shot down.
Eventually, the only compromise reached was that KSU's sexual health committee would propose a work plan and a timeline for KSU to implement "a proper sexual health promotion and awareness campaign", which would stress abstinence, being faithful and condoms.
This motion was presented by Mr Grech and was approved by 24 of the organisations present.
Students who attended the meeting explained that Move's proposal was criticised because it laid too much emphasis on the aspect of condoms, without giving enough importance to the other two parts of the sexual advice given by the World Health Organisation, namely abstinence and being faithful.
The debate on whether or not to install a condom machine in Students' House (the part of campus which is administered by KSU) has been raging for many years.
The primary aim of those pushing the idea was to create more awareness about safe sex and make condoms more widely available, as they are in most universities abroad.
However, due to the opposition that arose, the issue had become a political football between the liberal and conservative factions within the student body.
In December, Move presented an application to the University authorities to put a condom machine on campus, but the Rector Juanito Camilleri said it was KSU that needed to take such a decision.
KSU, which is currently made up of Christian-Democrat students, also passed the buck, by saying that it could not take a stand without first having a policy decided on by students.
During Fresher's Week, Move had carried out a survey among students which found that 70 per cent were in favour and only 18 per cent were against having a condom machine on campus.