The government's response to criticism over the removal of Momentum banners by the Cleanising Department would be more credible if it were not so transparently selective, the party said Tuesday.

The Director General of the Cleansing Department claimed that the banners were removed because they were illegal as the general election had not been announced yet. 

Yet, for weeks, the country had been inundated with illegal billboards widely associated with the Labour Party. These were allowed to stand, unchallenged and untouched, across Malta's roads and public spaces, Momentum said.

On the eve of the announcement of the 2026 Maltese general election, Momentum banners were removed with remarkable efficiency, only to be replaced in several instances by Labour Party messaging. 

This is not good governance by a Government department. It is the exact opposite: barefaced abuse and discrimination to favour the Labour Party, made even more shameful as it was done by a Department within the Public Service, Momentum said. 

This double standard reinforces a dangerous perception: that there are two sets of rules in Malta, one for those in power, and another for everyone else.

Today, Momentum Leader Arnold Cassola lodged a police report against Parliamentary  Secretary Glenn Bedingfield for the theft of 5 Momentum banners in Santa Venera and Marsa by employees of the Cleansing Department, that fall under Bedinfield's responsibility.