GE14 | Light from a giant LED screen illuminates a small crowd gathered at an empty street lined with closed shop houses. A call to prayer breaks the silence.

On the screen, a video shows a young Malay man expressing confusion over hearing the azan.

"The azan? As far as I know the azan is banned in Penang," the youth, Suhaimi, pondered.

Suhaimi's taxi driver, however, clarified that contrary to claims by some, the DAP-led Penang state government is actually Muslim-friendly.

The video, meant to dispel perception that DAP is the anti-Islam bogeyman painted by the ruling party, was featured as part of a mini-ceramah headlined by former Penang deputy chief minister Rashid Hasnon last night.

Rashid and the 150 in the audience were however not watching the video in Penang, but over 600 kilometres away in Taman Damai, Batu Pahat, Johor.

The choice of propaganda material is fitting, as the PKR leader has been tasked with defending Batu Pahat, a mixed parliament constituency where Malay support for the opposition was low in 2013.

In that contest, PKR won Batu Pahat with a 1,732 vote majority largely thanks to support from non-Malays.

This can also be observed at the state level, where the opposition lost in Malay-majority state constituencies of Rengit and Senggarang by 5,492 votes and 2,083 votes respectively.

In contrast DAP won Batu Pahat's remaining state seat Penggerang - which has over 60 percent Chinese voters - with a majority of 10,051 ballots.

Securing Malay support is thus a key factor for Rashid and Pakatan Harapan, and countering Umno propaganda against DAP is part of that battle.

In a joint interview prior to last night's ceramah, Rashid said being a former deputy chief minister could help dispel this stigma.

"It is a challenge, but I'll be explaining to them that I can survive over there (in Penang), by telling them about daily life there, and the allocations for Islamic institutions and so on," he told Malaysiakini and FMT.

Rashid drove this message home further during the ceramah.

"Every day I sit besides (Penang chief minister) Lim Guan Eng (as his deputy)... For 10 years the people have chosen this state government.

"I hope this election, Johor will join Penang and Selangor (under Harapan rule)," he told the crowd.

Meanwhile, in keeping with the theme of bringing the Penang experience to Batu Pahat, Harapan during last night's ceramah roped in incumbent Bukit Mertajam MP Steven Sim as a speaker.

Most of Sim's speech was targeted for a Malay audience, saying that the DAP and the Chinese in general accept Malay leadership of the country.

He also cited verse eight of Surah Al-Maida from the Quran, which speaks out against injustice towards other races.

Sim also used the azan issue again as a focal point.

"The only people who don't hear the subuh (pre-dawn) azan (in Penang) are those who don't wake up for subuh or have not performed mandi wajib (ritual bathing)," he quipped.

Poor publicity

Harapan's plans to woo the Malays in Taman Damai, however, did not pan out last night.

Among the 150-strong crowd, only about 30 percent were Malays, while the majority were mostly Chinese.

This is despite the ceramah being held in a Malay part of Batu Pahat town.

Locals told Malaysiakini that part of the reason why Malay turnout was low last night, was that there wasn't enough publicity done among the community.

"I only knew there was a ceramah because I was passing by," Saffar Gaffar, 60, told Malaysiakini.

Many of the Malays who did turn up also lingered on the edges of the ceramah on their motorbikes, observing the speeches quietly.

Meanwhile, others felt that the use of religion in the ceramah, including Sim citing a Quranic verse, were inappropriate.

"You shouldn't mix religion with politics. If you want to talk politics, just talk politics," Rahmat Arifin, 58, said.

The issue of Penang allegedly banning the azan stemmed from a viral image - in which the caretaker Penang chief minister supposedly tweeted that the state was allegedly finalising the ban.

Lim has denied making such a tweet.

Penang however prohibits the use external loudspeakers for mosque and surau programmes and activities, except for the azan and iqamah.