Labour leadership contender Michael Falzon has written to the Commission overseeing the June 5 election to complain about the "unfair treatment" he is receiving from his party's media, The Sunday Times has learnt.
Three weeks after announcing his bid for the MLP's top job, the 46-year-old lawyer said he had already been unfairly treated twice.
"In the upcoming contest, the Labour Party should emerge the winner, and not a particular faction within the party," Dr Falzon said when contacted.
One complaint relates to last week's discussion programme Dissett on Television Malta, which featured interviews with Dr Falzon and MEP Joseph Muscat, who is also running for the post.
It is alleged that while Dissett was being aired, One Television halted the popular programme Gizelle half-way through, as Dr Muscat was about to start fielding the questions from journalist Reno Bugeja on TVM. Instead, the chat-show programme Dopo was slotted in on One TV, until the second part of Gizelle resumed around half an hour later as soon as Dr Falzon started to speak on TVM.
The incident could have been dismissed as pure coincidence, were it not for the fact that four different reasons were given for the interruption, Dr Falzon explained. 'Technical errors' and 'editing problems' were among them.
One News also reported an erroneous news item carried in another newspaper saying that Dr Falzon would only serve in parliament for five years if he failed to be elected party leader.
"I protested on the grounds that our station was echoing an incorrect newspaper report, when during my news conference we had our own reporter who could testify that I never said anything of the sort," he said.
Dr Falzon felt compelled to call One News to retract the report in the same news bulletin.
He is reluctant to name those he believes are aiming to put him in a bad light, but he says that any such attempts had backfired since he had received several messages of support after the two incidents.
"Whoever is doing it is evidently looking after his interests. It's a disservice to the country... This election is not about who is going to be in control," he says.
Dr Falzon, who has served in the MLP for the past 17 years and who was elected on two districts in the March 8 election, is holding meetings twice a day with delegates.
"I feel there's a certain urge for the party to change... I appeal for a fair and clean campaign. What's important is that the party will emerge the winner on June 5... and that we win the next election," Dr Falzon said.
Dr Falzon is the second of the five MLP candidates so far to appeal for a clean campaign. George Abela has consistently lamented that the party machine was clearly doing its utmost to give a push to Dr Muscat.