MCA today denied it was conducting membership checks and urged the public to lodge police reports if approached by individuals claiming to do so.

Party secretary-general Dr Ting Chew Peh said MCA had never issued an order to conduct membership checks via telephone or house calls.

We advise the public to ask these people for their identity and then make a police report, he told a press conference at the party headquarters in Kuala Lumpur.

He added the party may also lodge a police report concerning the matter if the need arose.

Ting, chairman of the MCA steering committee responsible for ensuring the partys elections this June run smoothly, said he has received 50 complaints of the purported membership checks in Kuala Lumpur and Selangor.

This is the work of irresponsible parties and they are out to cause confusion, he said, adding this was the first time such cases have occurred.

Asked if MCAs dissident Team B faction were behind it, Ting said he did not know.

In a newspaper report today, the MCA secretary-general also claimed that forged letters, urging members to complain about their membership, were being sent out by a committee which was not officially sanctioned by the party.

Another press report had party central committee member and Deputy Home Affairs Minister Chor Chee Heung lambasting Team B leaders for questioning MCAs membership list through the media.

Team B had questioned the increase in members prior to the upcoming party elections.

A master list containing the names of 135,000 new members have been opened for scrutiny for 21 days at the party headquarters since the middle of this month.

Open door policy

Meanwhile, Ting today also advised members to check on their membership status at the party headquarters.

Asked to comment on DAP parliamentarian Teresa Koks claim that hawkers in her constituency had become MCA members without their knowledge, Ting said: Our policy is an open door policy and any Malaysian of Chinese origin is welcome to join the party but we do not force people to join us.

If there is anyone who feels that he or she has been forced to join MCA, they can just write in to the party headquarters and say that they do not want to join. If somebody wants to withdraw from the party, we will withdraw that name, he said.

MCA has been embroiled in controversy since its acquisition of two Chinese dailies which saw the party split into two camps - Team A led by party president Dr Ling Liong Sik , which favoured the deal, and Team B led by deputy president Lim Ah Lek which opposed it.

Fireworks are expected at the June party elections as it is speculated that Lim may take on Ling for the presidency.