Leiking said it was pathetic that certain parties were trying to spread misinformation about his status in Warisan, adding that those who were against him need not “make up lies like this”.

The former Penampang MP linked the spread of a false statement quoting him as announcing his resignation to his criticism of the Sabah government over the alleged mining scandal.

“To these sad, pitiful souls who are paid to lie and spread misinformation, come what may, I am with Warisan!” he said in a Facebook post.

Leiking is among the founding members of the party started by Shafie Apdal and has been Warisan’s deputy president since its inception in 2016.

The false statement quoted him as saying that “many issues had afflicted Warisan” recently and that he had submitted his letter of resignation to Shafie on Feb 14.