KUALA LUMPUR, Nov 17 ― Some 6,000 taxi drivers are expected to proceed with plans to rally against the Land Public Transport Commission (SPAD) in the city tomorrow, despite the police declaring the gathering illegal following its failure to obtain approval from the KL City Hall (DBKL).

According to The Star today, Kamarudin Mohd Hussain, a member of the Klang Valley Taxi Drivers Action Committee, acknowledged DBKL's rejection of its application for permission to protest at three separate locations here but confirmed that the gathering will proceed.

“DBKL has rejected … We will carry on with the peaceful demonstration,” he was quoted saying.

Without elaborating, he added that should the cabbies face any trouble tomorrow, the committee, which claims to represent 15,000 drivers, has a backup plan.

The Star also quoted KL mayor Datuk Mohd Amin Nordin Abd Aziz as confirming that the drivers have not received any permission for the gathering against SPAD.

“No permission. Only after Asean summit. We will consider after Asean summit,” he reportedly told The Star over the phone.

The Asean Summit kicks off tomorrow and will go on until November 22. Police have doubled security efforts across the city in anticipation of the event, which will see the attendance of world leaders like United States President Barack Obama, Russia's Prime Minister Vladimir Putin of Russia, Japan's Shinzo Abe and China's Xi Jinping, among others.

Yesterday, Dang Wangi district police chief Zainol Abu Samah issued a statement declaring the protest tomorrow illegal after its organisers failed to obtain approval from owners of the three rally venues.

He also warned that action will be taken against the protesters under the Peaceful Assembly Act if they proceed with the gathering.

It is understood that taxi drivers plan on holding demonstrations at multiple venues simultaneously, including Karangkraf, Padang Merbok, Masjid Negara and Dataran Merdeka.

Malaysian Taxi Drivers Transformation Association (Pers1m) deputy chairman Kamarudin Mohd Husain was quoted last month as saying that they are unhappy with how SPAD has allowed ridesharing services such as Uber and GrabCar to encroach on the industry’s interests.

Taxi drivers here have accused drivers of these services of stealing their customers, although there is no evidence to support their claims.