KOTA KINABALU: Parti Warisan Sabah has no intention to shift allegiances and will remain with the Opposition bloc, says Datuk Seri Mohd Shafie Apdal.

       The Warisan president reiterated the party's stand amid speculation that the Sabah-based party might be softening its stand with the new government under Prime Minister Datuk Seri Ismail Sabri Yaakob.

       Talk of a political shift emerged when Shafie said earlier this week that Warisan would not be pushing for a vote of confidence in Parliament for the newly-appointed prime minister.

       Shafie said that it was not for Warisan or the Opposition to call for a vote of confidence.

       "The King made it very clear (when they met on Aug 18) that whoever was appointed prime minister would have to table a vote of confidence in Parliament.

       "The ball now is the government's court. Ismail Sabri has been sworn in and it is now incumbent on him to honour the King's decree," he said.

       Ismail Sabri had 114 MPs who signed statutory declarations supporting him as prime minister.

       "Istana Negara has also verified it by interviewing each MP. I don't see any reason to avoid the vote of confidence decreed by the King as they have the numbers," he added.

       Earlier this week, Minister in the Prime Minister's Department Datuk Seri Dr Wan Junaidi Tuanku Jaafar said there was no need for Ismail Sabri to undergo a vote of confidence in Parliament and the King had consented to it.

       Warisan, together with Parti Bersatu Sarawak and the yet-to-be-registered Malaysian United Democratic Alliance (Muda) remains with the Opposition but are not members of the Pakatan Harapan coalition led by Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim.