Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia (Bersatu) Youth believes that Prime Minister's Najib Abdul Razak's delayed defence of his deputy Ahmad Zahid Hamidi signals the existence of fissures between the two leaders.

Bersatu Youth chief Syed Saddiq Abdul Rahman was commenting on his party chairperson Dr Mahathir Mohamad's allegations against Zahid.

“Mahathir made the allegation almost a week ago, but when did Najib defend Zahid? Yesterday. It's delayed.

“This clearly shows there is suspicion between them, there are differences between camp Zahid and camp Najib,” he claimed at the launch of Pakatan Harapan’s eight-point plan to combat corruption at the Bersatu headquarters in Petaling Jaya today.

Last week, Mahathir had accused Zahid of seeking his support to replace Prime Minister Najib Abdul Razak.

Apart from this, he also claimed that Zahid, when declaring his assets to Mahathir in 1996, could not provide a clear answer on the RM230 million in his bank account.

Yesterday, Najib described Zahid as his comrade-in-arms, saying that the pair has gone through thick and thin since 1986.

Whereas, Zahid denied Mahathir's allegations, and claimed to have a recording of their meeting.

On the RM230 million issue, Syed Saddiq demanded that the deputy prime minister furnish proof to back his claim that he earned his wealth during his tenure in the corporate sector.

“Zahid should show the public (his assets), to allow the rakyat to make their own decisions. If you calculate inflation and all that, the amount is almost RM1 billion today,” he said.

Also at the launch was DAP Youth chief Wong Kah Woh, who questioned Zahid’s explanation of being a businessman before joining politics.

“I wonder how much he earned as a businessman.

“Also, he never brushed off the allegation that he had RM230 million. From his response, there was an implied admission to the allegation.

“We call upon the Malaysian Anti-Corruption Commission (MACC) to commence an investigation into Zahid based on these allegations against him,” he said.

Zahid has said that he is willing to be investigated while calls have also been made for the MACC to probe the wealth of Mahathir and his children.