MCA Youth chief O­ng Tee Keat said he had submitted "relevant documents" regarding his allegation of triad politics in the party to Acting Prime Minister Dr Abdullah Ahmad Badawi at a meeting yesterday.

The meeting was held yesterday morning at Abdullah's office in Putrajaya.

When contacted, O­ng said he would not divulge the content of those documents as he had confidence in Abdullah to resolve the matter.

A Bernama report quoted O­ng who is also the deputy youth and sports minister as saying that Abdullah had received a list of names of MCA leaders with alleged links to triad groups.

Serious repercussions

Yesterday, Abdullah, after chairing a Barisan Nasional management committee meeting, said he had advised both parties, MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik and O­ng, from "aggravating the situation".

The acting premier also said he had asked Ling to resolve the party crisis immediately with "extreme care" as it could have serious repercussions o­n the ruling coalition, adding that a follow-up meeting with Ling would be held soon.

MCA split openly into two factions Team A led by Ling and Team B led by his deputy Lim Ah Lek since the party purchased two Chinese newspapers in May 2001. O­ng is aligned to Team B.

Ling said today he last met Abdullah in parliament o­n Monday and was told to stop "politics of triad" from creeping into the party as claimed by o­ng.

The MCA president also reiterated that O­ng should name those involved with triads so that these people could be referred to the party's disciplinary committee for further action.

Turning to BN

"If it is true, we will sack them (those with triad connections). It is a serious allegation and for the sake of BN and MCA, I am asking O­ng again to quickly name them," he was quoted as saying by Bernama .

Asked what action will be taken against O­ng if he still refused to reveal the names, Ling said he did not want to speculate but added "I think BN will help us o­n this".

Meanwhile, MCA deputy president Lim Ah Lek said he welcomed Abdullah's call to resolve the party crisis as soon as possible.

"The acting prime minister is very concerned about unity in MCA. As the general election is around the corner, we must unite to ensure the party will deliver the Chinese votes to BN," he said when contacted.

He said he was not aware of any meeting arranged by Abdullah for both sides to meet and resolve the latest controversy in MCA.

Disappointed with Ling

He also said he was disappointed with Ling whom he described as "not abiding by Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad's peace plan to clear problems in the party and to unite the members again".

On Sunday, o­ng shocked the public when he announced that politics of triad had crept into the party as evident in the events leading up to the infamous fracas at the wing's annual general assembly two years ago, marred by fist-fights, chair-throwing and a bomb scare.

Ling repeatedly urged O­ng to provide names of party leaders and members linked to triad groups, adding that the latter should leave the party if he did not choose to abide by the party constitution.

However, O­ng had said he stood by his statement and would not disclose the names for fear of risking his personal safety. He also asked Ling to use a report o­n the fracas prepared by a Youth investigation committee two years ago as a starter to look into his allegation of triad politics.

War of words

Both Team A and Team B leaders have since engaged in a war of words. Wanita chief Dr Ng Yen Yen, aligned to Ling, asked O­ng to "think twice" before making any statement, while O­ng retaliated by accusing Ng of being an Australian permanent resident while she was a senator.

MCA Johor chairperson Dr Chua Soi Lek, another Ling loyalist, had urged the party to institute disciplinary action against O­ng for tarnishing MCA's reputation.

Vice-president Chua Jui Meng, a Team B leader, had asked all leaders to stop their squabble o­n money and triad politics, saying that such matters should be dealt with properly by the relevant government agencies.