MCA president Ong Ka Ting today said he has not seen a resignation letter said to be tendered by suspended party's Gurney Drive branch chief Ong King Ee, or better known as 'Jackie Chan'.

Ka Ting said he was aware of the said letter but could not confirm the authenticity of it.

"I read about it from press reports today. MCA Penang chief Wong Kam Hoong also informed me about it," he said, adding that any decision on the matter would have to wait until he sees the letter.

The president was met after attending the "salutation ceremony" for his predecessor, Dr Ling Liong Sik, at the MCA headquarters in Kuala Lumpur this afternoon.

Three-paragraph letter

According to media reports today, the MCA Penang office received a fax yesterday afternoon bearing King Ee's name and expressing an intension to resign as a party member and the Gurney Drive branch chief.

King Ee, who was alleged to have tried to revive a secret society, Sio Sam Ong (Three Little Emperors), has been suspended by the party pending police investigation on Tuesday.

The full version of the letter, written in Chinese, was also published in Chinese dailies today.

In the three-paragraph letter, King Ee said he took the decision to resign in order to save MCA leaders and the party from being dragged into what he described as his personal problems.

"I hope that with my resignation, the accusations against MCA and its leaders will also stop," he said, adding he was sad that the party has been greatly embarrassed.

Meanwhile, Wong was also quoted as saying he was alerted about the fax but could not confirm whether it was from King Ee. He could not be reached for comment this afternoon.

'Most wanted' list

Last week, the police put King Ee, 37, and his right-hand man Chee Kok Loong, 26, on their 'most wanted' list for attempting to revive the group, which is said to be linked to murder, drug trafficking, kidnapping and robbery.

The group is also believed to have hired killers to storm a pre-wedding ceremony and killed six people in Sungai Petani in 1992.

In 1996, King Ee was placed under detention for drug trafficking and sent to the Simpang Renggam rehabilitation centre in Johor under the Emergency Ordinance.

He became a MCA member in 2000 when he was recruited by the Bukit Bendera division. He was promoted to branch chief a year later.

He is believed to has fled the country now and the police have also sought Interpol's assistance to trace him.

In a widely-circulated poison-pen letter in May, Ka Ting has been accused of having close link with King Ee and another triad leader in Selangor.

The president was also said to have abused his power as the deputy home minister during King Ee's detention and signed a directive to release the latter from a restricted residency.

Ka Ting denied the allegations and lodged a police report later.

He also rebutted several photos circulated on the Internet showing him in the company of the triads leader saying the photos did not show "specific indication of anything illegal".