Claims that Umno leaders are defecting to the opposition over the 1MDB scandal are just "mind games" to destroy the party, said Umno information chief Annuar Musa.

He said Umno would not crumble because the party knew who was plotting the "drama".

"Their attempts to create stories that Umno is supposedly under pressure, panicked, and splitting up, is an attempt at playing mind games, to see Umno lose its patience and drown or die.

"God willing, that will not happen because we understand what and who is behind the drama that is unfolding inside and outside the country," said Annuar in a statement today.

Yesterday, the South China Morning Post reported former New Straits Times political editor Firdaus Abdullah as saying that Umno was "jittery" and its senior leaders wanted to leave the party.

This was after the US Department of Justice filed lawsuits to seize assets allegedly purchased with funds misappropriated from 1MDB.

Annuar today said BN and the government viewed the lawsuits seriously and were cooperating with authorities to ensure that the investigation is carried immediately.

But BN would not dance to the tune of those using the issue as part of their "grand design" to gain political mileage and seize power, he said.

"The Umno leadership remains united and in solidarity under the leadership of the PM (Najib Abdul Razak)," said Annuar.

"Umno will not allow a conspiracy from within and outside the country determine the future of the people, regardless of how many that open the back doors for the enemies of the state to control the country's affairs.

"We are confident that the 1MDB issue will be managed with full responsibility and wisdom, and in accordance to the country's laws, God willing."

While Annuar did not name the masterminds of the purported mind games, Umno Youth today filed a police report against three inviduals allegedly plotting to topple the prime minister and the government.

The three named in the report are former Bank Negara governor Zeti Akhtar Aziz, outgoing Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) chief Abu Kasim Mohamed and ex-attorney-general Abdul Gani Patail.