Their political enmity is legendary, one that has spanned over decades and shows little signs of abating.

In the latest instalment, Lim Kit Siang is seeing red over Dr Mahathir Mohamad's remark that the people dread the possibility of him helming the government.

However, the 73-year-old veteran opposition leader forgave the 89-year-old former prime minister, whom he described as someone advanced in age.

"I forgive him for all his transgressions as we must take into account he is a nonagenarian. But he should stop being a merchant of hate and fear," Lim tweeted.

Initially, Lim said he thought Mahathir was warning that Anwar Ibrahim and himself would be arrested.

"But he completely went off tangent. Getting senile?" he asked.

In an exclusive interview with Sinar Harian published yesterday, Mahathir said the people supported BN because they feared Anwar and Lim leading the nation.

"If they get Anwar (as prime minister), they would see Kit Siang becoming deputy prime minister and then home minister and people would get arrested. That is what they reject," he had said.

'Mahathir has a very fertile imagination'

Apart from pondering if Mahathir was suffering from dementia, Lim also said the former prime minister possessed a "very fertile imagination" and dismissed his latest remarks as "quite a yarn".

"What did he say when I contested in Gelang Patah in GE13? What did he warn if I win? Now, new spin," he added.

During the last general election, Mahathir had campaigned for BN against Lim at the Gelang Patah parliamentary constituency in Johor.

He had asked voters to ensure that the seat would be Lim's "burial ground" but the latter emerged victorious after defeating former Johor menteri besar Abdul Ghani Othman.

Instead of "spouting poppycock", Lim said, Mahathir should reveal who are those capable of replacing Najib Abdul Razak as prime minister.

In the same interview with Sinar Harian , Mahathir had said that there were many candidates qualified to replace Najib.