Under-fire Opposition MP Jamahl Simmons will undergo heart tests today after being admitted to hospital with chest pains on Friday.

He was taken ill amid a potential battle to keep his Pembroke West constituency, with former MP Erwin Adderley confirming yesterday for the first time that he is hatching plans to oust him.

Mr. Simmons, who at 35 is the youngest member of the House of Assembly, said of his health scare: ?I had bad chest pains and got taken to the hospital. There were irregularities in my heartbeat.?

Although medics wanted him to stay in until today, when he will undergo further tests, they discharged him on Saturday afternoon at his request. He was in good spirits as he rested at home yesterday, telling The Royal Gazette: ?I?m fine.?

However, a crunch AGM slated for tonight that could have affected his future in Constituency 19 has been put on hold because of his illness.

A faction in Pembroke West is looking to replace him with former MP Mr. Adderley, amid claims he has neglected constituency duties. Speaking from the Florida where he was on vacation yesterday, Mr. Adderley confirmed that, despite a failed bid five months ago, he will throw his hat in the ring again if his supporters gain key positions at the AGM.

He claimed that dissatisfaction with Mr. Simmons ? the area?s MP since 2002 ? stretched back more than a year. He alleged that three people who complained then about local issues being overlooked, were still waiting for results.

?One of these individuals became so disenchanted they are working in an adjoining constituency and one said he was now considering voting PLP or not at all, ? said Mr. Adderley. He guessed ?the majority? of people in the area had concerns about Mr. Simmons? work and said rumours were also flying that he had been canvassing with pro-PLP family members.

?What we are dealing with is the fact of people being dissatisfied with Mr. Simmons? performance.

?I became concerned, and offered to challenge in order to get this matter on the table...the objective was to get the matter resolved,? he explained.

Although a previous attempt to get adopted as the candidate to fight Pembroke West at the next election failed, Mr. Adderley believes members of the selection committee that blocked him could get ousted at the AGM. If so, he will try again.

Reflecting on how he was thwarted last time around, he said: ?There are two parts to a challenge.

?You have to have sufficient people who sign a petition. I had that.

?The second is to become the adopted candidate. Despite the fact that I was the former member representing that constituency I was unsuccessful. I had the right credentials. I felt I had a reasonably good chance.?

He also addressed remarks made in this newspaper by Opposition Leader Wayne Furbert - who backs Mr. Simmons - that he turned down offers of other seats.

?That?s correct, but what he?s not said is I turned them down because I explained to him that my concern was for Constituency 19 and their lack of representation. If I had accepted one of the offers I would have been walking away from my basic concern. It would have been taking care of myself at their expense,? he said.

Mr. Adderley also insisted that he was not responsible for news of the constituency rift becoming public, speculating that a member of the Simmons camp was to blame.

?The reports in the news media up until now have not benefited me. He?s taken every opportunity to present his case. Up until this moment I have not commented,? he said.

Speaking prior to his illness, Mr. Simmons answered questions about whether he would resign if his supporters do not win out in the AGM by saying: ?I am not going anywhere.?

Mr. Simmons, who is the UBP?s spokesman on Race Relations and Economic Empowerment, believes those who oppose him within the Pembroke West branch number fewer than 13 out of a branch of up to 200 members.

Vowing to stay put, he said: ?I have the numbers, it will go my way. It should be remembered I wasn?t elected by 13 people. I was elected by 64 percent of the people within my seat.?

He was adamant that a supporter of Mr. Adderley made news of tensions in Pembroke West public.