In a bid to prove that Malays are not oppressed in Penang, DAP's Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim visited a Malay food stall owner in his constituency today.

"This is a Malay stall which was 'chased away' in Bukit Mertajam.

"They used to operate their stall without a license by the side of the road, but they were 'chased away' into a public market in Kampung Baru," Sim said in a Facebook post today.

When he visited the market, he said, the owner of the stall shook his hand happily.

The owner and his wife no longer have to be afraid about operating their stall without a license, he said.

They also have a permanent and more comfortable location for their stall, where their business is booming, he added.

"Look at the photo, they even have a Mat Salleh as their customer," he said.

As he was leaving the place, he said the couple who owned the stall sent a packet of nasi lemak to his staff to be given to him.

"Thank you for the Saturday morning boon.

"But I do not hope for anything, just that those who are always lying that Malays are oppressed in Penang can see the error of their ways," he said.

Though he did not refer to anyone specifically, it was reported late last month that Penang PAS chief Muhammad Fauzi Yusoff had said that local governments in Penang were biased against Malays and Umno-supportive hawkers.

A number of rural Malay-owned hawker stalls, he claimed, had been torn down for violating municipal bylaws.

Several other leaders have also claimed that Penang was oppressing or neglecting Malays in the state, such as PAS president Abdul Hadi Awang and Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor.