Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad feels sorry for former 1MDB CEO Shahrol Azral Halmi, whom the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) said should be held responsible for the sovereign wealth fund's weaknesses.

"I'm sorry for the (ex-) CEO; he did not found 1MDB, 1MDB is started by Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

"(Najib) is the adviser, anything that happens to 1MDB he would know.

"Actually, nothing can be done without his agreement, so why punish this man," Mahathir said.

Among the weaknesses cited in the PAC's report on 1MDB was the management breaching decisions and advice from the board of directors, or had acted before the board made specific decisions.

The board in a statement later, offered to resign .

Asked to comment on this, Mahathir replied that the whole of 1MDB should be dissolved.

"They have done nothing good at all," he added.

Mahathir was speaking to reporters after attending a closed-door forum on the Save Malaysia movement at the Universiti Malaya alumni clubhouse in Kuala Lumpur.