Parti Bersatu Pribumi Malaysia (PPBM) pro-tem vice-president Datuk Seri Mukhriz Mahathir turned down an invitation from UMNO information chief Tan Sri Annuar Musa to rejoin the party.

The former Kedah menteri besar said he was not interested in the offer even if it came from the UMNO president himself.

“I don’t know whether to laugh or to feel surprised. What’s certain is I was sacked and did not resign.

“The President had once offered me a Deputy Minister’s post and later a full Minister’s post which I had rejected. More so an offer from an information chief,” he told reporters at an event at Wisma AMANAH Negara here on Tuesday.

Mukhriz added he would continue to stay with PPBM.

On Monday, Annuar had extended an invitation to Mukhriz, former deputy prime minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin and other recently sacked UMNO leaders to return to the party.

He said this when asked to comment on claims by blogger Raja Petra Kamarudin that former prime minister Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad had wanted his son to become the prime minister.

Annuar also cited Tengku Razaleigh Hamzah as an example, saying the UMNO veteran rejoined the party after leaving it to form Semangat 46.

Mukhriz and Muhyiddin were sacked in June for questioning the party’s leadership over the controversial 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) issue.