The allegation was made in a Facebook posting by Badrul Hisham Shaharin, a firebrand activist who was recently sacked from PKR.

“There’s no truth in it,” said Lajim.

Badrul Hisham, better known as Chegubard, also claimed that Sarawak PKR chief Baru Bian would join Lajim in the defection and that they would be followed by many others.

Lajim, who is Sabah Oppostion Leader, acknowledged having had talks with Shafie, but he said these were discussions between Sabah PKR and Shafie regarding cooperation in the coming general election.

“We had asked Shafie to join us, but he declined as he may be starting his own party,” he told FMT.

He said Pakatan Harapan was hoping to join forces with Shafie and several local parties in what he called a “Pakatan Harapan plus-plus” formula.

Lajim added that all talks between Sabah PKR and Shafie were transparent and that the PKR central leadership was aware of the contents of the discussions.

Last month, news reports said Lajim had reminded PKR to inject resources into Sabah and Sarawak to ensure that Pakatan Harapan could maintain the momentum in its effort to capture Putrajaya.