Rafizi said the offer, which he rejected, was made by Nurul Izzah at a meeting three days before PKR delegates cast their ballots in the party’s central leadership elections.

“When she met me, she tried to propose having an appointed deputy president – me. But even if it were to be an appointed party president, I’m not interested, all the more other party posts,” he said today.

“Because this isn’t a question of posts but the message we want to convey,” he said when met at an event organised by his Pandan parliamentary office here today.

In response to Rafizi’s remarks, Nurul Izzah dodged the matter and said she simply wanted to help the party close ranks and bolster its values after the internal elections.

The newly-elected PKR deputy president also said: “I believe that matters spoken in confidence between friends should remain between them.”

Rafizi failed to secure re-election as deputy president last month, losing to Nurul Izzah who received 9,803 votes to his 3,866 votes. He subsequently offered his resignation from his Cabinet post as economy minister.

He said today that he will resume his duties as a normal MP and the head of the party’s Pandan division. He is on leave from his official duties while his resignation is effective June 17.

Rafizi had previously revealed that he had rejected a last-ditch appeal from Nurul Izzah to help her after the party polls ended.

Rafizi said he believed that her plea stemmed from concerns over the new leadership lineup, which she feared would bring trouble for Anwar Ibrahim and PKR.