Johor MCA chief Dr Chua Soi Lek, who replaced Chua Jui Meng as the health minister in Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi's new cabinet, was today appointed the party's vice-president.

The party's central committee, which met for the first time after the March 21 elections, also appointed Fu Ah Kiow as vice-president. He is from the MCA Team B camp.

Both posts were left vacant after Ong Ka Ting and Chan Kong Choy were named MCA president and deputy president respectively in a peace plan hatched last year between the party's two rival factions, Team A and B.

Team A's Dr Chua, who has served as a Johor executive councillor for three terms, is a close ally of former MCA chief Dr Ling Liong Sik.

During the general election, Dr Chua escalated to federal politics, contesting Ling's parliamentary seat of Labis in Johor.

His meteoric rise has been at the expense of de facto Team B leader Jui Meng ( photo ), one of the party's four directly elected vice-presidents. Jui Meng was missing at today's meeting.

(The other vice-president is Team A's Dr Fong Chan Onn, who is Human Resources Minister.)

Observers note that the dropping of top MCA men from cabinet positions in the new government - including Team A's Chor Chee Heung (former deputy home minister) and Team B-linked Negri Sembilan deputy chief Yeow Chai Thiam (former state exco member) - may see the resumption of factional divides within the party.

Not unusual

When met, deputy president Chan Kong Choy, however, disagreed that party morale would plunge as a result of the changes announced.

Yeow, in particular, has claimed that his exclusion as state exco member reneges on the terms of the party's peace plan - the band-aid to smooth over the transition of Ling's leadership to the present helm - that was sealed last year.

Party treasurer-general William Chek, who has retired, was replaced by MCA Terengganu chief Lau Yin Pin, who was also sworn in as a senator today.

Two deputy's posts - left unfilled in recent years - were revived today. Negri Sembilan chief Hon Choon Kim was appointed deputy secretary-general, while Donald Lim ( photo ) was promoted from central committee member to the post of deputy treasurer-general.

Both are deputy ministers in the Education Ministry and Information Ministry respectively.

MCA president Ong Ka Ting said the decision to revive the posts was not unusual, as both had been filled "... most of the time since 1971."

Ong said a full central committee would allow the party to better fulfill its "... pledges to the people."

Election appeal

Several vacant central committee posts were also filled. Lumut MP Kong Cho Ha, considered another of Ling's lieutenants, was made a member. He was recently catapulted into the post of deputy minister of science, technology and innovation.

Johor's Hoo Seong Chang, who is Domestic Trade and Consumer Affairs parliamentary secretary and Perak's Lee Chee Leong, state assemblyperson for Malim Nawar, take up the other remaining positions within the central committee.

On a separate matter, Ong ( photo ) announced that the party will propose that the BN challenges the election results for three seats he claimed that MCA candidates lost under dubious circumstances.

The three are the parliamentary seat of Bukit Bintang and the state seats of Pantai Remis and Kota Lama, in Perak and Kelantan respectively.

"We feel we have grounds to put forth an appeal, for consideration first by BN's central committee," he said.

In Bukit Bintang, MCA's Tan Chew Moi lost to DAP incumbent Fong Kui Lun by 304 votes, amidst allegedly questionable circumstances such as ballot boxes found stuffed with garbage when they were opened.

Leong Su Siang lost to PAS' Anuar Tan Abdullah in Kota Lama by a slim 445 margin, while Wong Chong Sang lost to DAP's Pantai Remis incumbent Nga Kor Ming by a 2,303 votes.