On its last night as the state government of Penang, the DAP went on a 'Teng-bashing' spree at the heart of his former constituency, Padang Kota.

The animated crowd filled the Penang Chinese Town Hall to the brim, laughing heartily as DAP leaders mocked state BN chief Teng Chang Yeow for not being courageous enough to contest against their party's secretary-general, Lim Guan Eng.

NONE They described Teng as a coward for "chickening out" of the race in Padang Kota - although he was the assemblyperson there for three terms - only to lose to state DAP chief Chow Kon Yeow ( right ) in 2008.

Lim related the entire episode, including how Teng set conditions for the contest when he had been the one who first said that he was willing to meet the former at the coming polls.

Teng, who is the Gerakan secretary-general, had opened himself to a contest with Lim when he said that "it was up to him (Lim)" when asked by KiniTV if he were willing to accept the challenge.

When Lim said he was bewildered as to why Teng dared not come back here to stand against him when he had said that “one must rise from where one falls”, someone from the mostly Chinese crowd shouted, bo lang ai ee liao! (Nobody wants him anymore) to the sounds of laughter from the audience.

"When we organised this ceramah on the last night before we dissolve the state assembly, we expected Teng to have accepted the offer to meet me in Padang Kota," Lim said.

"The contest would have given a clear choice to the people. They would have had the option of two leaders offering two visions, people- or crony-centric government,' he told the 1,000-strong crowd.

"Will it be a government of the rakyat or Umno? Integrity or corruption, corruption, corruption?" He mocked.

Lim then apologised for the tough five years of administration, especially when it involved "traffic congestion due to lots of rallies" by pro-BN supporters, including Malay rights activists Perkasa.

He added that Pakatan supports rallies, but not when it resulted in massive traffic jams around Komtar on Fridays.

'Penang changed for the better?'

He also went on about the state's many achievements, saying "BN simply cannot understand. They are wondering: How come without federal help, Pakatan could still make money?".

He took credit for BN's RM500 handouts, mocking that "if we don't give out the RM100 appreciation award for senior citizens in Penang, the people would not be getting the 1Malaysia People’s Aid (BR1M)".

NONE "Has Penang changed for better? Isn't it cleaner? Healthier? Safer?" He thundered and the crowd gave a resounding "Yes".

At the end of his speech, Lim asked the audience to stand and show their support and loyalty for Pakatan, which they did willingly, throwing their fists in the air and shouting “Yes!”.

Meanwhile, Chow has confirmed that he will be defending Padang Kota, and asked for the people's support, saying that "I am here to face you and face BN".

He also mocked Teng by singing a famous Chinese song by the late diva, Teresa Teng, known as "How do you want me to say it?"

"Say it by voting me!" he quipped, and the crowd cheered him on.

"The most significant impact of the 2008 results is for the people to see peaceful change through the ballot box," he said.

"Before that, the younger generation has no idea, especially those below 55 years, that through a little paper, one can bring about change in the government," he added.

"It proved that we, too, can govern and we can do it better. For the first time, our votes matter and we can change the destiny of country. It is no longer the prerogative of BN to be the government".