Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad today stressed that he does not interfere in the affairs of PKR.

"What have I done? Did you ever see me saying anything bad about Anwar or Azmin or somebody?

"This is their party, I'm not interfering," he told journalists at the Parliament building's lobby today.

The Bersatu chairperson said this when asked to respond to an audio recording purportedly of PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim condemning his deputy Mohamed Azmin Ali as a “Mahathir lackey”.

PKR leaders have denounced the recording as fake. Azmin, when approached at the lobby, said he was unaware of the audio recording.

Meanwhile, Bersatu strategist Rais Hussin, in a statement, urged Anwar to clarify the issue to quell rumours, despite the various denials from other leaders in the issue.

"It will be good if DSAI (Anwar) clarifies these voice recordings quickly, although like what Winston Churcill once said 'You cannot reach your destination if you stop and throw stones at every dog that barks'," he said.

Rais also questioned the authenticity of the recording, citing it is done in "piecemeal" fashion, as opposed to a continuous version, and said there seems to be "cut and paste" elements to the voice recordings.

Azmin has yet to announce which position he will be contesting in the upcoming PKR polls which has led to speculation that he may be challenging Anwar for the presidency.

His appointment as economic affairs minister despite his name not being on the list submitted by PKR for ministerial posts had led to earlier speculation that Mahathir was empowering Azmin as a trump card against Anwar.

However, Azmin has since reiterated his loyalty to Anwar.

He also blamed the allegations on Umno, accusing them of trying to split the Pakatan Harapan.