PETALING JAYA (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) - Former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad has taken his campaign against Prime Minister Najib Razak a step further by becoming the patron of the Coalition of Umno Branch Chiefs Malaysia (GKCM) that is working to oust the prime minister and Umno president.

The group, which claimed to be represented by Umno branch leaders from all over the country, was formed last November to press Datuk Seri Najib to step down so that Umno would be saved from ruin.

It said Dr Mahathir had agreed to become its patron during a meeting held at the former prime minister's office in Yayasan Al Bukhari on Friday (Feb 12).

Umno secretary-general Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor on Saturday rubbished the group, calling it a trouble maker.

He said they should read and understand the party's constitution before doing "whatever they want to do".

GKCM has claimed that Dr Mahathir was happy with what it had achieved in a such a short span of time and for speaking the truth about the situation in Umno.

"Interestingly, GKCM is made up of people from many different backgrounds. This is one of GKCM's strengths. We make decisions based on the majority," the group said in a statement.

It added that Dr Mahathir was interested in the coalition's ideas and had also expressed his concern that there were fewer intelligent people in Umno these days.

GKCM said it had received a massive boost from Dr Mahathir, whom it believes will strengthen the coalition's struggle.

In a video uploaded on its Facebook page, Dr Mahathir urged the coalition to be active and said that it should have people working in every state.