Angry cabbies gather in front of court again

KUALA LUMPUR: The Kuala Lumpur Court Complex was filled with angry taxi drivers this morning when more than 100 cabbies gathered in a show of support for their comrades involved in a legal case with the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD).
Prior to reaching the court complex, the group marched from Jalan Duta to show their frustration towards ride-sharing services Uber and Grab.
The taxi drivers who came from all over the country want Prime Minister Datuk Seri Najib Abdul Razak to stop Uber and Grab from operating in the country.
The government had recently given its approval for both Uber and Grab to operate with Deputy Transport Minister Datuk Abdul Aziz Kaprawi saying that new public service vehicle (PSV) permits would be issued and it would be known as driver card.
Later, the cabbies from various taxi drivers associations gathered outside the Prime Minister's Office to submit a memorandum for the the government to put a ban on both Uber and Grab.

"Today, we are handing over a memorandum to the Prime Minister strongly urging him to ban Uber and Grab as our income had been badly affected due to Uber and Grab," Persatuan Pemandu Teksi Berwawasan Putrajaya and Selangor chairperson Saari Omar told reporters outside the PMO in Putrajaya.

Earlier, the High Court here dismissed a suit by 102 taxi drivers against SPAD over the ride-sharing service Uber, Grabcar and Blacklane.
Judge Datuk Su Geok Yiam said the plaintiff should have filed the suit through a judicial review and not writ of summons together with statement of claim.
She said this was because among the remedies pleaded was a mandamus order (court order) against SPAD to carry out its duty under the law.
In addition Su also pointed out that Uber, Grabcar and Blacklane were not named in the lawsuit together with SPAD.
On Dec 30, 2015, taxi drivers had filed the civil suit against SPAD, seeking the High Court to ban Uber, GrabCar and Blacklane.
The 102 members, including its president, Zailani Isa Usuludin, are seeking a declaration to ban Uber, GrabCar and Blacklane activities and operation as it is not subjected to the Land Public Transport's Act.
They also claimed that the drivers do not have any insurance coverage to protect the passengers and violated Land Public Transport Act and that Uber, GrabCar and Blacklane were given priority by the defendant while their rights and interest were side-lined and ignored.