Bersatu supreme council members have refuted an earlier claim that its president Muhyiddin Yassin was once touted for a premiership, but only to be “hijacked” by Dr Mahathir Mohamad.

They maintained that Mahathir, who chairs Bersatu, has been the party’s only candidate for prime minister.

Bersatu information chief Kamaruddin Mohd Nor said the topic of the party’s PM candidate was not discussed at supreme council meetings in the early days of the party, thus rendering the claim made by former member Kamarulazman Habibur Rahman untrue.

“In the first few months, we were more concerned about setting up the party, getting the membership and the divisions sorted out.

“The issue of Muhyiddin as a PM candidate was never even once proposed, it was never discussed,” Kamaruddin said.

Earlier today, Kamarulazman claimed that the council had once wanted to push Muhyiddin, a former deputy prime minister, to the fore.

He also claimed Mahathir’s formal re-entry into politics through Bersatu later derailed those plans.

Kamarulazman, who is a Bersatu founding member, quit the party last April after less than a year in the party.

'Even Muhyiddin pushed for Mahathir to be PM'

When the party eventually discussed their choice for a PM candidate, Kamaruddin said it had “always been Mahathir”.

Meanwhile, when contacted separately, fellow Bersatu supreme council member Dr Rais Hussin answered similarly.

“Mahathir has always been the only (PM) candidate for Bersatu. We discussed this at length (at our meetings).

“In fact, it was Muhyiddin who pushed for Mahathir to be our candidate,” Rais told Malaysiakini.

Rais accused Kamarulazman of conjuring "fairytales" while Kamaruddin said he was trying to portray Mahathir in a negative light.

Following months of speculation, the former prime minister was finally announced as opposition coalition Pakatan Harapan’s PM-designate earlier this month.