Berlusconi, during an address to a shopkeepers' group, used a slang word for testicles to describe centre-left voters but the term is commonly used as a crude insult to describe someone of little intelligence.

Common translations of "coglioni" in British and American dictionaries range from "idiot," "cretin," "fool" and "moron" to "prick" and "asshole."

"I have too much esteem for the intelligence of Italians to think that they could be such 'coglioni' to vote against their own interests," Berlusconi told the group. "Excuse my rough but efficient language."

The incident rocketed to the top of the national news and centre-left politicians led by former European Commission President Romano Prodi criticised Berlusconi, who is behind in the latest opinion polls.

"With all the respect I have for (Berlusconi's) voters I would never use that anatomical term we heard today used about us," Prodi said.

"Berlusconi is no longer fit to lead our country."

Berlusconi, who has repeatedly accused his opponents of showering him with insults during the election campaign, later defended himself, saying his comments were intended to be "ironic" and were being "manipulated".

His spokesman said an opposition politician had used the same word recently.

The Democrats of the Left (DS), the largest party in the centre-left, said Berlusconi owed an apology to the more than 16 million Italians who did not vote for him in the 2001 elections.

The most recent polls found the right was trailing by up to five percentage points and suggested some 24 per cent of Italian voters were still "don't knows."

But Renato Mannheimer, a leading pollster, said: "There are actually very few people who are undecided about who to vote for. The issue is whether they vote or not."

He said Berlusconi was seeking to mobilise those who, if they could be persuaded to cast their vote, would cast it for him. "And with this sort of remark he could perhaps manage it," he said.

Berlusconi's outspoken comments during the campaign have ensured he remains the centre of attention.

This week, a Milan newspaper reported that he had told a party meeting about a straw poll of sex chat lines he had conducted during a sleepless night.

"Seven out of nine of the young ladies who answered acknowledged they preferred me (to Prodi)," he was quoted as telling his followers.

Source:China Daily