Teng: BN not ruling out ‘Rainbow’ candidate

The Rainbow lady, who was said to be romantically involved with Lim Guan Eng, may be roped in as a candidate for the elections.

GEORGE TOWN: Barisan Nasional state chief Teng Chang Yeow said the coalition would explore all possibilities to field winnable candidates in Penang in the forthcoming general election.

Hence, he did not rule out the possibility of Xiao Hong, known as the Rainbow lady, being fielded as a BN candidate.

“We will consider any winnable candidates,” Teng told reporters when asked on speculation that BN was holding talks with Ng Phaik Kheng or Rainbow to contest in the polls.

However, Teng tried to confuse reporters by saying that he could be talking about a different “Rainbow”.

“I don’t know which Rainbow you are talking about. I could be talking about a different Rainbow,” said the Gerakan secretary general.

In June last year, a few blogs alleged that Penang Chief Minister Lim Guan Eng was romantically involved with Ng, when she was a staff in the Chief Minister’s office (CMO).

Lim, the DAP secretary general, reacted angrily when questioned by reporters on the blogs’ allegations. He issued legal threats against reporters if they dared to write or print about it.

The Rainbow controversy also caused a furore between Lim’s wife and Kota Laksamana representative Betty Chew and Duyong assemblyman Gan Tian Loo in the Malacca Legislative Assembly last July.

On Thursday, Teng reportedly told a vernacular newspaper – “let me consult Xiao Hong”, when asked on whether he would accept Lim’s challenge for an electoral face off in Padang Kota in the next polls.

In his facebook comment, DAP state chairman and Padang Kota incumbent representative Chow Kon Yeow asked: “Teng Chang Yeow, is there no better response?”

Meanwhile, Teng said BN had finalised almost 95% of its candidature list, albeit three to four seats, in Penang for the coming polls.

But he declined to elaborate on the issue despite being posed with various questions.

He only said that BN, especially his party, Gerakan, aimed to rise from the ashes in the next polls.

Gerakan, like MIC and MCA, was wiped out in the 2008 general election after helming the state government for 39 years.

Of the state 40 state seats, DAP won 19, PKR nine and PAS one to form the Pakatan government, while Umno became the state opposition by winning 11.