It was a slow start at the gathering organised by the Malay Action Front this afternoon, with just about 1,000 people having arrived at Dewan Merdeka, Putra World Trade Centre, at 2pm when the event was scheduled to start.

Although the organisers have said some 10,000 people were expected to attend the gathering in Kuala Lumpur, the "small" turnout occupied only a section of the hall.

Coordinator Mazlan Harun, was seen with Ibrahim Ali, a former deputy minister, while Tamrin Ghafar, son of former deputy prime minister Ghafar Baba, was also present.

The crowd included 300 elderly women, with a small number of children, while another 300 youths wore T-shirts identifying themselves as members of Kelab Perindu, Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM).

Proceedings were delayed by about half an hour before it started with a Qur'an recital.