Speculation is flying around that there had been a major quarrel between two top DAP leaders in Penang - the head of the state government and one of its executive councillors.

The speculation, circulated by the media, came without any background of where the alleged spat took place, the time nor the place.

There is even a joke that Penang’s CAT is no longer the acronym for competency, accountability and transparency, but now stands for ‘Cocky, Arrogant and Tokong’ .

These were labels Deputy Chief Minister I Mansor Othman was caught saying in leaked minutes of a closed-door PKR meeting, an audio recording of which was featured on TV3 on Monday night, though the former said those words were blown out of proportion.

penang dap launch new headquarters lim guan eng chow kon yeow For some time now, DAP opponents have been trying to cause a rift between DAP secretary-general Lim Guan Eng ( left in photo ) and his Penang party chief Chow Kon Yeow ( right in photo ).

Although there has yet to be a public indication that the duo are at loggerheads, their detractors often try to speculate that their relationship is at breaking point.

Since 2008, Lim’s legitimacy as Penang chief minister has been constantly challenged as his opponents continue to question why a person from Malacca should assume the post and not a Penangite.

They often insinuate that Chow, a long-time leader in Penang, should assume the post as CM, forgetting that Chow is from Kuala Lumpur.

CM tired of ‘BN’s lies’

When asked via sms about his purported “big quarrel” with Chow, Lim replied, “You should call up and ask Chow.”

“(I’m) getting tired of lies by BN,” said Lim, who was about to attend a dialogue with industry players organised by the state investment arm, InvestPenang, at the Hotel Equatorial in Penang.

penang anti dap forum 220912 pc Only recently, in an anti-DAP ceramah in Penang, former senator Tunku Abdul Aziz Tunku Ibrahim ( second from right in photo ) also questioned Lim’s position as CM, saying he had declared himself so right after Pakatan Rakyat gained state power in 2008.

Tunku Aziz, the party’s former vice-chief, said following the election results on March 8, DAP leaders gathered in a room at the Red Rock Hotel along Jalan Macalister and bolted the door tightly.

“They wanted to make sure that no one was jumping ship to BN,” quipped Tunku Aziz, who was a former Transparency International-Malaysia chief.

Tunku Aziz then said a question was asked as to who would be CM, and Lim had allegedly quickly replied, “Me, because I am the party secretary-general.”

But party supporters defended this action, saying that Lim had been sent to Penang to lead the election campaign and won. Therefore, it was only natural for him to become the CM if the team won the polls.

Others say that it does not matter where the CM comes from as long as he is qualified and is not corrupted, often saying this in comparison to BN’s 18-year rule under former chief minister Koh Tsu Koon.

When contacted about the spat rumour, Chow laughed it off and said, “What quarrel? You can come and see whether I have suffered any body injuries.”

When told about the speculation, Chow, who is Tanjung MP and Padang Kota assemblyperson, said he felt the same way as his boss. “I, too, am tired of BN’s lies.”