Police remain on alert despite cancelled protest

KUALA LUMPUR: Although organisers of the #Lawan protest had called off their event, police left nothing to chance yesterday.

As of 12.45pm, the only individuals gathered along Jalan Tun Perak near the Dataran Merdeka intersection were police personnel and around 20 people from the media.

Roads in and around Sogo Complex and Dataran Merdeka were closed while Dataran Merdeka will continue to be off-limits until further notice.

On Friday, the Kuala Lumpur Magistrate’s Court issued an order banning any procession or gathering within a one-kilometre radius of Sogo Complex and Masjid Jamek on Saturday.

“We want those planning to hold or take part in gatherings or processions to know that it is prohibited. We urge the community here to comply with standard operating procedure (SOP) under Phase One of the National Recovery Plan,” said City police chief Comm Datuk Azmi Abu Kassim.

Rapid KL announced the temporary closure of several LRT, MRT and monorail stations. Police also diverted traffic on 88 routes.

Earlier this month, Sekretariat Solidariti Rakyat (SSR) vowed to hold a protest on Aug 21 demanding Tan Sri Muhyiddin Yassin resign as prime minister, but called off the protest on Thursday.