You would think that after being legalised and even endorsed by the prime minister as a source of income, that ride-hailing services from Uber and Grab have become a part of Malaysian life. Still, there are protests going on, this time by a group of taxi drivers outside Parliament yesterday.
According to The Star, the group of about 50 gathered some 200 metres from the Parliament guardhouse in the morning, carrying placards and chanting slogans opposing Uber and Grab (image above is a file pic). They also submitted a memorandum to several opposition MPs who met them, including Pokok Sena MP Datuk Mahfuz Omar, Bukit Gantang MP Idris Ahmad and Pandan MP Rafizi Ramli.
Blowing the same old horn, the group claimed that the ride-hailing services were flouting the law and carrying out “illegal activities”.
“Uber and GrabCar must be subjected to the same laws and regulations as taxi drivers. Only then can we accept them. We are here today because we want our MPs, whom we have chosen through the ballot box, to meet us and ask us what is really happening on the ground,” said group spokesman Zailani Sausudin, who is the chairman of the Klang Valley Taxi Drivers Action Group.
“Taxi drivers all over Malaysia are facing many difficulties right now. We cannot pay rent, we have no source of income and are unable to support our families or pay for our children’s education. What is happening?” he added.
PAS MP Mahfuz said the government must find a solution “once and for all” to assist taxi drivers, whom he said were being marginalised. He said while there’s nothing wrong with services from Uber and Grab, the legal procedures that cabbies have to abide by should also apply to drivers from the other side.
“There are already so many taxis out there, so if the government wishes to allow Uber and GrabCar, then I think taxi services should be terminated and existing drivers should be allowed to use their own vehicles to ferry passengers,” he said.
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yup taxis should be allowed to be uber drivers as well. it will help with their income.provided they keep their cabs neat and tidy.
In order for them to be uber their cars need to be in proper order – uber set nothing more than 8 yrs old, they need to know how to use uber app and Waze and last – manners. Many taxi drivers are lacking either one of them.
U are right alldisc. Most taxis/drivers fail at least 2 of the conditions mention by U.
The other day,there was a horrible jam in front of UH,Jln Universiti.
As I approached the bus stop……omg..30 red taxis waiting for patients at 10am.
How stupid these dudes. By the time the patients depart,usually will be around 12 noon to 1pm before the doctor’s lunch break.
They wait 3 hrs just to get 1 passenger who may end up paying only RM5 for a short ride.
U see the madness here,leading to mass insanity.
Hello,this is the age of smartphones.
u want to use manual typewriters,pls go drive red cabs in Timbuktu.
Ur kunta dupe no enuff, so need to bring new dupe below kah?
KWAP dan Khazanah Nasional sudah menambah pelaburan dalam Uber. Syukur…
There was massive jams yesterday. Many people took 2 hours to go to work. All because of this.
Who is to be blamed? We can safely blame PDRM cause last year when the teksi gangsters held Malaysia at ransom, PDRM was like chicken. So scared. Dare not even arrest. Roadblocks that caused massive jams in the capital due to teksi gangsters were all let off the hook.
Do you know so many people died because the heart attack victim in the ambulance cannot reach hospital in time due to their road blocks? Even yesterday, few died in ambulances.
Time for PDRM to buck up and stop escorting VIPs all over town. Do your job. People are dying because of you!
Some say illegal mass public gathering is our human rights wor…
so is privileges and discounts.
Just join grab or uber. Find a life taxi drivers. Same to kunta also.
I’m curious how do you know “many had died”. Perhaps you are working with the paramedics?
I agree with u totally Goh…I am.a heart attack survivor and I was lucky to be save in time.
Whatever those hooligans are doing now, literally proved to the public and also the world, of how UNPROFESSIONAL they are in doing their job.
Imagine if they can act like this and show it to the parliament and the public, wonder how much scarier it is to sit in the same taxi with them privately going places?
Who would want to go into their taxi? The public are scared with you.
No one will sympathize you hooligans, the public is not bothered, UBER GRAB drivers all happy fetching customers, your dear crony boss sitting in office counting money, gomen is in full support with GRAB UBER services
The good thing about UBER GRAB is that, there’s a customer service, an effective one. Where customers can complain and comment on the driver. Then UBER GRAB is able to take action against the problematic driver.
Good for those innocent, non-gangster taxi driver to survive in their business. Kesian them for getting a bad name due to all the hooligan taxi drivers.
I believe those SMART taxi drivers would ditch their taxi business much earlier for UBER GRAB.
It’s very easy, since Uber and Grab got less thing to bother about, why not switch from normal taxi to Uber or Grab? Those protester is only those who suck money from taxi driver, not the driver as i know most of them already convert to Uber or Grab.
Our teksi gangsters now say they cannot pay rent. Their problems started 20 years ago. They had to pay super high rates to a crony dude who held many teksi licenses. It is still happening today. All the teksi companies are just run by a few fat cats who are cronies.
These political fat cats are the ones squeezing the teksi gangsters until today.
Unfortunately, they are too stupid to see who is squeezing them. So, they just blame Grab and Uber.
Hello kawan kawan pemandu teksi, jangan bodoh sangat. Buka mata anda. Tengok siapa pemilik lesen in semua.
These teksi gangster desrve it cause 20 years, they never complain. they let the crony be happy with his wealth increasing.
Same with the AP priciple also. 30 years we suffer cause few AP thieves want to get richer and richer
Syabas!! bersatu Rakyat Ubah!
https://paultan.org/2017/01/24/laws-to-regulate-uber-grabcar-to-be-tabled-march-6/
the taxis and their personal cars are generally more than 5 years old..how to switch to uber and grab car?
Because of lousy proton cars that feels like falling apart and with the lousy service and drivers don’t use metering system to charge the customers, customers will not take taxi. Why pay more to seat in a lousy proton with no safety feature when I can grab a Toyota Wish 20-30% cheaper?
Don’t run for the brand shikin but convenience and accessibility are the choices of priority.
Does the taxi industries Up their customer service and concern on consumer’s complaints. No, I haven’t heard any of it, only more and more complaints from the consumer, and most of the taxis outside shopping mall are still negotiating price instead of using meter.
They refuse to change on their abusive culture on making money and hate people using the rite way.
nobody say u cant quit and be uber or grab also…bising apa
I have experience charges for a 5km journey cost RM25. When I reject the offer politely, I was harass with nasty words from the taxi driver. Although they are few good taxi driver out there, but most of them act like gangster.
It is such a relieve now with all this ride-hailing apps
Some of the condition of these taxi are so scary that I wouldn’t dare to step in. If there’s a regulation that all car used as taxi must be below 8 years (rules set by Uber) and well maintained, then I will consider taking taxi.
Isn’t this an unlicensed, unapproved public gathering? Worse public disturbance and hazard.
Go fly kites
I REALLY pity those Taxi drivers who could have earn extra $$$ but choose to protest outside parliament. With many complaints about its drivers being rude, uneducated, obnoxious & whats not, they are Marginalize by most M’sian including our Gov & us paying customers.
Yes, they may be bad & sometime even act like gangsters but who will want to be a cab driver if there are better alternatives. I guess the idiom – As you make your bed, so you must lie on it – says it all. U sow what U reap.
Until the day our taxi service is willing to take me to the nearest LRT station using meter without asking where I’m going before boarding then you have my support. Grab and Uber always accept my booking to the nearest LRT station regardless of the fare amount. Will our taxi accept a short RM3.00 ride? NO! End do discussion!
Move on or become extinct
Illegal activities also include cheating, like charging RM50 for a trip from Petaling Street to KLCC, extortion, threats towards others, damage to other vehicles by your so called protests etc. If you taxi drivers do not sedar diri, you will become like Nokia 3310. If you are unable to accept fair competition, then you must be living under the coconut shell. Today, someone from London can advance booking a room in KL using an app. You taxi drivers must still think the telex machine is the only way to communicate overseas.
meanwhile, uber and grab drivers protest because of low fare and incentive cut.
No worries. Then taximen can plotes against Grabuber and the Grabuber drivers too can plotes against Grabuber… last-last somehow plot twist ini salah Gov…
It was a scary experience the last 2 times I took airport cab from KLIA to Puchong (one was 8 months ago and one was 4 years ago). In both the cases I bought the tickets from KLIA taxi ticket counter. Both the drivers was driving recklessly and was really driving fast (up to 160km/h in a old Waja) & rushing. The one I took 8 months ago nearly hit another at a traffic light near my residence area. Now I am really scared to take another KLIA taxi. These drivers just don’t care about the safety of their passengers.
Please join international services like uber or grab. Dont spoil name again and again doing unnecessary things.
why not just protest only taxi can be on the road…
ban private cars, buses, train, LRT….
and can add in airplane to the list too, just in case, car may fly one day….
Sorry I’m lost here. Actually who’s stopping them from switching over to Uber or Grab? Hmm..something very fishy here.
I read along that they are not so “techy”, then learn; why are they whining all the times? Why so manja one :) everything must need gov’s support, assistance and crutches. Sheesh..
Permanent scare on malaysia image on top of other issues. Floating basis always otherwise less then 1hr job to settle this issue.
Grab the drivers and throw them in jail…
‘Nasib baik ada uber….xmemilih passenger dan tempat…murah dan drebar xpelik perangainya’ ….that is the comment from my uber passenger this afternoon from sect 8 Shah Alam to AEON Mall Shah Alam)
Not sure about uber but a source from Grab told me that they are very stringent on allowing whom can be driver. Anyone with drug offences or even speeding offences beyond 3 tickets will be banned from becoming a grab driver……Perhaps these protesting folks cannot become uber and grab drivers even if they want to?
I wonder what kind of law enforcement is the cabbies referring to? You mean unfairness because cabbies can’t use smartphone device to get riders in comparison to Uber and Grab? Cabbies can use older cars but Uber and Grab are strictly with cars below 8yo? Or because cabbies can “choose” when they need to use meter, but Uber and Grab have to have all routes recorded by the app?
What is the cause of the uproar, exactly?
From Confused Consumer
Government won’t ban uber/grab. It revitalises a city. Too many locals and tourists use them.
“I think taxi services should be terminated and existing drivers should be allowed to use their own vehicles to ferry passengers”, well said.. lets go for it