MCA president Dr Ling Liong Sik should step down if an independent probe is carried out and the findings prove the existence of phantom members in the party, said his deputy Lim Ah Lek today.

This is because according to the MCA constitution, the party president is held responsible for the proper administration, management, and control of the MCA headquarters, he said.

Lim added that he is prepared to resign as deputy president if his allegations about phantom members are proven wrong.

He reiterated that the membership list for the upcoming party elections remains dubious and that a thorough check will further reveal thousands of phantom members.

I am 100 percent certain that the list of 138,000 new members approved by the central committee between August and December last year is still tainted and unclean, Lim said in a statement.

The statement made by (secretary-general) Dr Ting Chew Peh with regard to the phantom members found in the party is incorrect and misleading, he added.

The deputy president said this in reference to Tings claim that the list had been verified by Deputy Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi.

According to reports today, Ting who is also heading the party elections steering committee was quoted as saying that allegations about phantom members were therefore baseless.

He said only 905 discrepancies among the new members enrolled late last year were detected by Abdullahs staff who were aided by the National Registration Department (NRD).

Meanwhile, party sources told malaysiakini that MCA delegates are talking about calling for an extraordinary general meeting (EGM) to nullify the new membership list.

It was also learnt that several Team B state leaders together with Lim met Abdullah this afternoon in Bentong, Pahang to discuss the latest development about the much-disputed membership list.

The deputy premier was there to join the Barisan Nasional campaign for the March 31 Ketari state seat by-election.

Branch leaders nominated today

MCA has been split into two camps  Team A led by Ling and Team B led by Lim  following its controversial acquisition of two Chinese newspapers Nanyang Siang Pau and China Press last May.

The last party EGM was held last June where a thin majority of the delegates voted in favour of the RM230-million deal.

Nomination for MCA branch leaders is to take place from 4pm to 8pm today. All branches except those in Pahang will then hold their elections on March 30 and 31.

This will be followed by divisional elections and state elections in April and May respectively. The party annual general assembly, which chooses the central leaders every three years, is scheduled for June 29.

It is widely believed that a candidate from Team B will challenge Ling for the party presidency.