Perak DAP chairperson Ngeh Khoo Ham said he has spoken to Jalong state representative Leong Mee Meng over her claims of being marginalised by the party leadership and it was no longer an issue.

NONE Ngeh said he contacted Leong immediately after reading of her complaints and offered to discuss her grievances.

To stress that he and Leong enjoyed a cordial relationship, Ngeh said he sat with her on the same table during two public functions held on Sept 20 and the following day.

"To us, the problem is solved and we were very happy at the dinner," he said when contacted today on the issue which has been widely publicised in the Chinese press last week.

About a week ago, Leong broke down in tears while speaking at a function within the Jalong constituency when she claimed that she was being marginalised by the party leadership.

Following this, she told several Chinese dailies that this has been going on for months and the last straw was when she was not notified of a recent party function in the Jalong area.

From outsider to treasurer

To make matters worse, she was not sat at the main table during the dinner despite being the elected rep for the area.

Though she did not name anyone in her speech, it was widely believed that Leong was pointing the finger at Ngeh and his cousin Nga Kor Ming, who is the DAP state secretary.

Ngeh attributed Leong's "expression of emotions" to "pressure" from being both an elected rep and state DAP treasurer.

He added that several "poison pen letters" and difficult party members in the area have also aggravated the situation.

Leong, a businesswoman who hails from Pahang, wrested the Jalong seat from Gerakan, trouncing her opponent with a 5,000 vote majority.

Despite being an outsider, Leong's popularity with the party grassroots grew and she was elected state DAP committee member and later appointed state party treasurer.

When contacted, Leong declined to comment because her views had already been extensively carried in the Chinese press.