KUALA LUMPUR, Aug 10 — Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi has today admitted to being the "mastermind” behind the ousting of Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad as prime minister.

Speaking while launching the Cameron Highlands Umno division meeting, the deputy prime minister said he did so to save Umno from getting deregistered.

"I must state, and admit, that I was the main mastermind who brought down Tun Dr. Mahathir at that time, because there was no way Umno could be banned, insulted, and accused of various things... labelled as thieves or corrupt,” he was reported saying by Berita Harian.

Zahid said he was informed of the matter by now-prime minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim, that then-home minister Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin was ready to pull the trigger on the move.

"In such circumstances, of course, members, especially the leadership, depended on me to identify the best approach to ensure that Umno was not banned, so I had to find a way.

"If you all still remember, during the 2018 Umno General Assembly, I stated that in the near future, we would be part of the government, but I was mocked by certain individuals who are no longer in Umno,” he reportedly said.

Zahid also said that he would reveal everything in his upcoming memoir.

"Just now I shared only 10 per cent, 90 per cent will be in my book. Usually, people write books when they are retired, but I am not retiring yet as long as Umno is not a dominant party, as long as that is the case, my colleagues and I will continue in Umno.

"Hopefully, it will serve as a guide for future Umno leaders who will take over my place,” he added in the report.

Dr Mahathir resigned as prime minister in February 2020, just 18 months after Pakatan Harapan won Putrajaya for the first time in six decades.

He had then said he did so not on the spur of the moment, but only after he believed that he had no longer command the majority in the Dewan Rakyat.

Muhyiddin-led Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia would later form the Perikatan Nasional government with Zahid-led Umno and PAS.