A cafe owner removed a parody poster of Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng which was used to promote his "below market price" food after the DAP headquarters took offence over it.

The incident involving Sköhns Canteen, based in Damansara Perdana, was highlighted by political columnist Hafidz Baharom, who related the matter on his blog .

The original poster, uploaded on Sköhns Canteen's Facebook page, had featured a picture of Lim with the caption: "Sköhns Canteen... Good food... Below market price".

It was an apparent jibe at Lim's controversial purchase of a bungalow on Jalan Pinhorn in George Town for RM2.8 million, said to be below market price.

However, the cafe owner later received a message from DAP headquarters' media officer Medaline Chang asking that the parody poster be removed.

"We (DAP)... have a small problem with your ad.

“I understand that you take the p*** our of politicians on both sides, however, have been directed to inform you that the allegations by BN are unfounded and because it is currently being used as a distraction by BN in light of all the scandals plaguing the ruling government, we feel that it will contribute to the negative publicity surrounding the Penang chief minister.

"We would very much appreciate it if you could remove it," read the message, which was put up on Hafidz's blog.

Sköhns Canteen subsequently removed the poster on Facebook but put up a new one which looked exactly the same, except Lim was replaced by a picture of former China president and secretary-general of the Communist Party of China Jiang Zemin.

The poster also carried a disclaimer that read: "Random. Not Malaysian Chinese politician".

The cafe, in its Facebook post of the new poster, said: "Can't afford lawyers. So here is a revised poster. Still 30 percent off all pastas. All day Friday".

Can't afford lawyers. So here is a revised poster.Still 30% Off All Pastas. All Day Friday.

Posted by Sköhns Canteen on Thursday, March 24, 2016

Another poster featured the Communist Party of China's former central politburo member Bo Xilai, who was the subject of one of China's most high profile corruption cases and was subsequently sentenced to life imprisonment.

The poster bore the caption: "Sköhns Canteen. No swimming pool, no high prices", in apparent reference to Lim's dismissal that his bungalow had no swimming pool and was nothing luxurious.

Lim is also the DAP secretary-general and Bagan MP.

'BN leaders parodied too'

Sköhns Canteen has, in the past, also made fun of other politicians as part of its promotional material, including Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

One such poster on March 16 showed a picture of Najib with the caption: "Never miss a meal, you never know when you might be kidnapped".

What are your lunch and dinner plans today?Chicken Chops are 30% Off All Day Wednesday. Try… https://t.co/pR9iRLbbNB

Posted by Sköhns Canteen on Tuesday, March 15, 2016

The caption was an apparent reference to Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi’s claim that militants had plotted to kidnap the prime minister.

Hafidz, in highlighting the incident, criticised the DAP for not being able to handle parodies even though the party had a knack for producing such materials against government leaders.

"DAP is well known for propaganda involving parodies. Teresa Kok made a video of it. So did Tony Pua. In fact, they thrive on it.

"But what happens when the tables are reversed? Well, it seems that they’re not so accepting of people making jokes and parodies about them.

"Instead of shrugging it off and moving on, the party is now in such a state of paranoia over Lim’s image that they’re sending out polite threats?" he said in the blog post.

Hafidz questioned if DAP would have grounds to complain if the prime minister and his supporters too find DAP's parodies in bad taste.

"They should have just shut up about it and told Lim to go try the food out of good sport.

"I guess DAP can dish out the heat but can’t handle it themselves. And this is the party that promotes and demands freedom of speech and expression?" he said.

'Unfairly positioned'

DAP's Chang, when contacted, said the request was done politely as the party felt Lim was "unfairly positioned" in the poster.

"The owner of the Facebook page could have chosen to ignore or not comply. We did not condemn the owner or his restaurant.

I sent the owner of the Facebook page a private message. He could have opted to keep the ad up on his restaurant's Facebook page, and it is unlikely we would have pursued the issue further.

"He deleted it without hesitation and informed me accordingly. We appreciate his understanding," she said.

Malaysiakini had also contacted Sköhns Canteen on Facebook and is awaiting its response.

Lim had stressed his bungalow (photo) purchase was based on a ‘willing seller-willing buyer’ basis and was conducted at arm's length.

He had also welcomed the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission's investigation and expressed confidence that there would be no elements of corruption found.