Najib Abdul Razak has urged Umno members not to drown themselves amid a stirring revolt within his party.

"Don't dig holes on the ship. If we dig hole on the ship, what will happen?

"It means we will all drown. This must be avoided," he said while officiating the Kuala Nerus Umno division annual general meeting in Kuala Terengganu this afternoon.

He also urged Umno's grassroots not to betray the party and to be loyal.

Najib had been under siege over the RM2.6 billion deposits into his personal bank accounts. He said the money was a donation from Umno backers in the Middle East.

However, unhappiness in Umno was fuelled when Najib moved to remove Muhyiddin Yassin as deputy prime minister and Shafie Apdal as a minister.

Muhyiddin, who is also Umno deputy president and Shafie, who is an Umno vice-president, were critical of Najib's handling of 1MDB.

In his speech, Najib also reminded the over 400 delegates not to embarrass one another.

He said while differences of opinion were normal in the party, criticism must be done in an appropriate manner.

"If there are differences, criticise in a proper manner," he urged.

Najib added that Islam taught Muslims not to embarass others.