During the Christmas period, heads of state, prime ministers and opposition leaders deliver their traditional annual messages. Some opt for Christmas to convey their message while others go for New Year’s Eve.

Leaders generally use the occasion to highlight their country’s achievements in the previous 12 months and outline the challenges ahead. The end-of-year message has always been concise and delivered in a simple layout. The themes covered and the choice of words is never controversial. This is after all the time of year when people want to have a break from the usual political controversies.

This protocol has always been adhered to both locally and abroad. I cannot remember any instance when a particular leader’s message was talked about beyond the following day let alone two weeks later. People usually listen to their leader’s message and carry on with the festivities. Not this year in Malta.

Joseph Muscat’s end-of-year message is still talked about in the media and in the streets two weeks after it was screened, and for all the wrong reasons. To start with, no local leader has ever taken longer than 10 minutes to deliver his message. Muscat’s act lasted 20, more than Angela Merkel’s, David Cameron’s and Francois Hollande’s put together.

The setting and production were way too extravagant. When asked by the media, the Office of the Prime Minister took more than a week to inform taxpayers about the cost of production.

Then there was the kitchen act. It transpired that the couple hosting the Prime Minister had bought their property in 2008 and therefore could never have benefitted from the first time buyers’ scheme as Dr Muscat proclaimed in the broadcast.

Furthermore, the featured young couple is not an ordinary working family. The husband is the son of one of the biggest furniture manufacturers on the island. But he projected himself as an ordinary man who has done well under the Labour government.

Let me make myself clear. There is nothing wrong with one doing well in business. There is nothing wrong either with being the son of a successful businessman or having a lavish kitchen in your house.

In the months ahead the PN’s representatives must visit real families in real kitchens

What is wrong is the Muscat’s deceptive message. If he and his aides wanted this sort of production, even though it was very much out of place, they could have found an ordinary working class couple in an ordinary kitchen. There was no need for such extravagance.

But that is how Castille has been operating since Muscat took office. They are in constant election mode and use every occasion to project a fictitious story as real. This time round the story backfired big time.

Simon Busuttil’s own message contrasted sharply with that of the Prime Minister. It was clearly non-partisan, with the focus being the family. The set-up was humble and appropriate for the occasion. And there was not a trace of deception in Busuttil’s choice of words.

You know you got it right if the people and the media do not talk about your message beyond the usual day-after report. Busuttil got it right and Muscat failed miserably.

This is a continuation of what we have been experiencing during this legislature. The government’s propaganda machine is well oiled and has the ability to wrap a rotten product in a shiny wrapper. For a long stretch the party in government managed to deceive the electorate but things are changing. The electorate is starting to see through this government’s modus operandi.

In contrast, the leader of the PN has been honest with the electorate since taking office. He has admitted the mistakes made by previous administrations and offered an apology where needed. He has provided the electorate with a vision of a new way of doing politics. He is taking clear positions on every matter. At times his positions, such as his desire to protect the environment, may not be popular with everyone.

The PN under Busuttil’s leadership has so far been an effective opposition. It has now shifted gear to being an alternative government.

There is a clear contrast between Busuttil and Muscat. The former is being honest with the electorate while the latter is deceiving the people. The verdict of pundits, commentators and academics alike has been unanimous, namely that Muscat’s theatrics made a mockery of what has traditionally been a unifying moment. The distinction between fact and fiction has been blurred and confused. Real became surreal. A statesman became a con man. We deserve better.

The PN’s challenge is to deliver its message clearly in every corner of the country. The PN may not have the financial resources of the PL to do this but it has an important asset, an honest leader who wants to clean up politics.

In the months ahead the PN’s representatives must visit real families in real kitchens because they may well be the victory kitchens.

Hermann Schiavone is a PN candidate in the general elections.