GEORGE TOWN (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - The Chief Minister of Malaysia's Penang state, Mr Lim Guan Eng, suggested on Saturday that a promenade be renamed after Mr Karpal Singh, the veteran opposition leader who died in a car accident on Thursday.

Mr Singh, a leading politician from the Democratic Action party (DAP), was also a prominent lawyer who defended opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim in his sodomy trials. He was first elected to Malaysian parliament in 1978 from Bukit Gelugor constituency in opposition-run Penang.

"I will be proposing it in the next state exco meeting that we rename the 800m long IJM Promenade as the Karpal Singh Drive as an honour and memory to him," Mr Lim told a press conference at Mr Karpal's residence in Jalan Utama here on Saturday

In Bahasa Malaysia, it will be known as Persiaran Karpal Singh.

Mr Lim presented a map of the IJM Promenade with the new name to Mr Karpal's wife Gurmit Kaur.

Expressing her thanks, Mrs Kaur said: "During this difficult period I would like to put on record my utmost appreciation towards the state government for assisting in the entire proceedings and giving my late husband a funeral with state honours by lowering state flags to half mast until tomorrow and by giving him a state flag to be draped over his casket and a two-hour public funeral."

It was the first time she had spoke to the press since his death on Thursday.

"I am also grateful to the state government for announcing that the promenade in Sungai Pinang is to be named Karpal Singh Drive.

"The Tiger of Jelutong has now a road named after him in the place he had served for five terms," she said.