Updated 8.30pm with Police Force's reaction

A Facebook post of Home Affairs Minister Byron Camilleri and his partner smiling with a football-themed birthday cake led to at least one police officer being summoned before a professional conduct board last month.  
 
Alex Schembri, the president of the Malta Police Association, told Times of Malta that the unnamed officer was summoned before the Professional Standards board and told to expect a written warning. 

The unidentified officer is one of around a dozen officers that have faced some form of disciplinary procedure for engaging with politicians on social media in recent months, Schembri said.  

In the birthday post, the minister is seen with his partner Salome after she brought an AC Milan frosted birthday cake to the Home Affairs Ministry in Valletta to mark his 33rd birthday. The photo garnered more than 4,000 likes.  

Times of Malta is informed that another officer recently received a written warning for liking a post by Justyne Caruana when she was re-appointed to cabinet as Education Minister last year. 

“They [the police top brass] are summoning every officer that has posted a like on Facebook with a politician. It's getting a bit ridiculous,” Schembri said. 

It's getting a bit ridiculous

He said that while he agreed officers should not be partisan or show any bias, the constitution gives all citizens the right to freedom of expression.  

Unions offer officers help 

In a statement on Monday, the MPA said it was concerned about the way police officers were being treated.  

The association said it had received a number of complaints after officers had been asked to appear before the police’s professional standards board. 

The association said an internal investigation was being conducted into officers’ use of social media platform Facebook after officers were found to have liked posts by politicians or in some cases posted friendly comments.  

The MPA said it has serious reservations over the way the matter was being treated by the police’s top brass.  

It invited officers facing disciplinary action over the matter to get in touch by sending an email on complaints@mpa.org.mt  

On Sunday, the Police Officers Union also issued a statement urging the police administration to be practical when enforcing social media rules. 

It warned against abusive enforcement of conduct rules and said it had hed a meeting with the police's top brass about the matter. 

Most received verbal warning

A spokesperson for the Police Force told Times of Malta that rather than conducting an internal investigation, the Professional Standards Office has looked into a "small number of cases where police officers could have acted in breach of the internal policies regulating social media activity and political participation".

"Verbal warnings were mainly issued in this regard," the spokesperson said.

They added that the Police had "internal procedures that enforce the recently updated Police Code of Ethics to ensure the impartiality of the Police Force and to tackle other issues of good governance within the Force". This, they added, had set a new standard for Force.
 
The spokesperson meanwhile noted that the Force's administration had "taken note" of the unions' declarations and was willing to engage in further discussions.

It will also support initiatives that would increase awareness among Force members of their obligations as officers "who represent an institution that needs the trust of the general public to conduct its work effectively".