Yee, who is PBS deputy president, said the poster had been manipulated by certain parties and widely shared on social media with the intention of harming his reputation.

“I believe the culprit changed the poster to play on sensitive religious and racial sentiments, which can disrupt the peace and harmony here. We worry that the picture manipulated by irresponsible parties will give the impression that I am intentionally mocking the beliefs of other faiths,” he said in a statement today.

The doctored poster included the logos of Perikatan Nasional, Umno, PAS and Barisan Nasional under a headline in Chinese and a slogan in Bahasa Malaysia saying “If I win, hudud will be implemented” (saya menang, hudud dilaksana).

Yee is a medical doctor by profession and also a lawyer with his own firm before he became a state minister.

He said he had made the police report as he believed the picture was seditious, adding that he hoped swift action would be taken by the authorities

He will be contesting in a nine-cornered fight for the Api-Api seat, facing Sabah PKR chairman Christina Liew, who seeks re-election; LDP president Chin Su Phin and Parti Cinta Sabah deputy president Pang Yuk Ming among others.

Yee is a former deputy chief minister and a state minister. He served in the Sabah cabinet for two terms from 2004 to 2013, and had previously been elected Api-Api assemblyman for three terms from 1999 to 2008.

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