Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Tun Razak today said that Tun Dr Mahathir Mohamad should not be taking the limelight as he was no longer helming the country.

"He's no longer prime minister, he shouldn't take centre stage," Najib said at the start of his keynote address at the World Capital Markets Symposium, here.

Dr Mahathir has been vocal in his criticism of Najib and has even asked him to step down over the 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB) issue.

The prime minister did not mention Dr Mahathir by name but it was obvious who the person he was referring to.

"Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that one of my predecessors will be against me in this manner," Najib said.

The prime minister had maintained that he would not step down and that the government had its own way of solving the 1MDB issue.