Tag Archives: Drivers

Check out these new set of rules for Uber users.

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Uber has released a new set of guidelines and rules that riders must adhere to if they want to continue to use the taxi service.

Some of the rules, which mostly target the riders, also apply to the drivers.

“It’s a universal truth we were all taught by our parents. And something that’s important here at Uber,” an Uber news release said.

“That’s because whether you’re a passenger trying to get from A to B—or a driver wanting to earn money—we want everyone to enjoy the ride.”

Breaking any of these rules could get you banned from using Uber ever again.

Damaging drivers’ or other passengers’ property

Damaging the car, breaking or vandalising a phone, intentionally spilling food or drink, smoking, or vomiting due to excessive alcohol consumption.

Physical contact with the driver or fellow riders

As our community guidelines make clear, you shouldn’t touch or flirt with other people in the car. As a reminder, Uber has a no sex rule.

That’s no sexual conduct with drivers or fellow riders, no matter what. And you should never hit or otherwise hurt a driver or fellow passenger.

Use of inappropriate and abusive language or gestures 

Asking overly personal questions, using verbal threats, and making comments or gestures that are aggressive, sexual, discriminatory, or disrespectful.

Unwanted contact with the driver or fellow passenger after the trip is over

Texting, calling or visiting someone in person after a ride has been completed.

Remember, in most countries, you can call and text your driver directly from the Uber app without ever having to share your personal phone number.

This means that your phone number stays anonymous and is never given to the driver.

Breaking the local law while using Uber

Bringing open containers of alcohol or drugs into the car; traveling in large groups that exceed the number of seat belts in the car; asking drivers to break local traffic laws such as speed limits; or using Uber to commit a crime, including drug and human trafficking or the sexual exploitation of children.

REPORT: Uber can now track your location even after your ride is over

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Uber has started tracking users for five minutes before and after exiting their ride, the company recently announced in its update.

 

It may not be as intense as CIA-level spying, but users aren’t very comfortable with the update.

 

Prior to this latest update, Uber only collected location information during a passenger’s trip and only while the app was running in the foreground. No data was collected after the drop-off.

 

Uber claims the upgrade will help end the frustration experienced when drivers and passengers can’t locate each other.

 

Explaining the update on its website, Uber said: “Uber collects your location data from the time of trip request through five minutes after the trip ends, including when the app is in the background.”

 

Uber, however, explained how to turn off the feature:

 

  • On Android: Settings ? Apps ? Uber ? scroll to “Permission” ? toggle “Location”
  • On Android Lollipop (5.1) and earlier: Settings ? Location ? toggle Off
  • On iOS: Settings ? Privacy ? Location Services ? Uber ? choose “Never”

FRSC Officials To Start Bearing Arms

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The Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) says it is taking steps to arm its roadside personnel for their safety.

 

The Corps Marshal of the Federal Road Safety Commission, Mr Boboye Oyeyemi, made this known after detailing an increased rate of personnel casualties at the commission.

 

This was one of the issues that emanated from the year-ending strategy session convened by the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC).

 

Bringing together all state commanders and sector heads of the FRSC, Corps Marshal Boboye Oyeyemi noted that 2016 has seen an unprecedented rate of intentional violence against Road Safety officials.

 

 

With the implementation of a reviewed road safety enforcement strategy, the FRSC has recorded an unprecedented 25% reduction in road fatalities and a 15% reduction in road accidents.

 

In actual terms, there were 4,005 deaths and 7,657 road crashes at the end of the 47th week in 2016. And while progress has been made with greater operational efficiency, unprovoked vehicular criminality has proven much more difficult to check.

 

He emphasized that with the death of over 70 FRSC personnel in 2016 alone, there has been an increase in personnel casualties at the hands of motorists who drive on the wrong side of the law.

 

The Corps Marshal emphasized that such violent acts would soon be met with the full force of arms.

 

He made it clear that the act establishing the commission allows them to bear arms.

 

While the FRSC intends to protect road users, they believe recent trends necessitate measures that will safeguard the guardian; measures they hope would eliminate unjustifiable acts of violence against their personnel.

Crashes Are Caused By Drivers’ Negligence, Not Ember Months- Oyeyemi

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Mr Boboye Oyeyemi, the Corps Marshal, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), said in Lagos on Monday that many crashes were caused as a result of disobedience to traffic rules and regulations by road users, not the ember months.

Oyeyemi made the remark during the official flag-off of the Ember months campaign of the FRSC, Lagos State Command.

Oyeyemi, who was represented by Mr Austine Aipoh, Zonal Commanding Officer, Osogbo, said that there was no supernatural thing about the ember months, saying that crashes were caused mainly by human disobedience to regulations.

“Today, we have come to demystify the belief and situate the mindsets and our actions for veritable safety on our highways.

“The truth is that nothing is supernatural about the ember months, road crashes are caused due to disobedience of rules and regulations by road users,’’ Oyeyemi said.

According to him, increase in socio-economic activities during the period engenders inordinate traffic surge that stretches the road transport system.

He said that most motorists throw caution to the winds under the complex traffic situation, and embark on speeding, overloading and wrongful overtaking.

Oyeyemi added that speed limit violations by drivers had become a critical risk factor which accounted annually for a significant loss of lives.

The FRSC boss, therefore, advised that motorists and stakeholders should rise to their responsibilities by playing a part towards achieving a crash-free season.

Mr Akinwunmi Ambode, Lagos State Governor, represented by Mr Anofiu Elegushi, Commissioner for Transport, said that the ember months campaign were a strategy to reduce crashes.

Elegushi said that the aim was to elevate the consciousness of motorists during and after the festive season.

“The ember months campaign as a component of the FRSC strategic engagements is aimed at elevating the consciousness of Nigerians to the realities of road traffic crashes and its implications.

“Nigeria, as a developing country accounts for 91 per cent of road fatalities, which are colossal to human capital and material losses, with frightening implications on the health system and sustainable development,’’ he said.

The commissioner appealed to Lagos residents to consider their safety as utmost, especially during the end-of-year festivities.

According to him, the road is not a race track and it is not a place for competition, hence drivers must stay away from speeding, drunk driving, dangerous driving and use of mechanically deficient vehicles.

Mr Tajudeen Agbede, Chairman, National Union of Road Transport Workers (NURTW), represented by Mr Ifeoluwa Adenusi, said that the association has advised its members to drive safely during the season.

Agbede noted that members have been encouraged to go through medical check-ups before embarking on their journeys.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the ember months campaign tagged “Crash the Crash: Speed Kills,’’ was sponsored by Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Company (SNEPCO).

Credit: NAN

Speed Limiter Compliance Still Low – FRSC Boss laments

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Twenty-three days after the commencement of the enforcement of the speed limiter device in the country, compliance remains at a parlous level, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Corps Marshal Boboye Oyeyemi said on Wednesday.

Oyeyemi while flagging off this year’s don’t drink and drive campaign by the Nigerian Breweries (NB) Plc said a mere 5.11 per cent compliance level have so far been reached.

Oyeyemi who was represented by the Corps’ Public Education Officer Mr Inoh Etuk at the event which was held at the brewing giant’s Lagos Headquarters, put the total number of vehicles checked during the period at 77,817 during which only 3, 980 vehicles were found to have installed the device while 73,837 others were yet to comply.

Oyeyemi who applauded the NB Plc for its commitment to the campaign said trends in the past had shown that accidents often doubled during the ember periods “not necessarily because of the actions of witches but because we as cart pushers, motorcycle riders, pedestrians and vehicle owners fail to use the road within the requirements for safer road use.”

He said to further make the road safer during the period, the FRSC would be deploying Special Intervention Patrols (SIP) to compliment the usual special marshal during the yuletide.

He said alcohol when taken above the required limit “reduces our sense of judgment as the vehicle driver and often results to speed limit violation.”

According to him, the theme for this year’s ember month campaign which is: crash the crash, kill the speed is aimed at making everyone see the safety on the road as a joint business and one that requires the involvement of all.

The Corporate Affairs Adviser Kuffre Ekanem, said the Nigerian Breweries as a flagship corporate entity remained committed to encouraging responsible consumption of alcohol.

Ekanem who was represented by the Sustainability/Regulatory Relations Manager Mr. Edem Vindah said three states: Ebonyi, Ekiti and Edo States and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Abuja, were selected for this year’s campaign following statistics provided by the FRSC on road traffic crashes across the country.

He said the campaign will include road shows and public enlightenment sessions at motor parks in the three states.

“Responsible consumption messages with the don’t drink and drive themes communicated through print and electronic media during the campaign period,” Ekanem said.

Ekanem said the DDD is one of he ways NB gives back to the society as part of “our vision of winning with Nigeria and it involves public enlightenment campaigns, communication and capacity building workshops. Since the program’s launch in 2008, we have held 35 rallies in major cities across the country. The rallies continue to attract a large turnout of stakeholders that includes commercial and private vehicle drivers, motorcycle and tricycle riders.”

He said the event is to strengthen the MoU signed with the FRSC in 2014 and is aimed at encouraging responsible consumption of alcohol.

Ekanem said the DDD is part of NB’s sustainability strategy tagged brewing a better world. “Our brewing better world strategy helps us identify ways to contribute positively to the planet and society such as protecting water resources, reducing carbon emissions and sustainably sourcing of raw materials.

The DDD is one of the ways we give back to the society and part of our vision of winning with Nigeria, he added.

Girl Plunges Car Into Canal Killing Herself And Her Dad After Mistaking Accelarator For Brakes

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A teenage learner driver killed herself and two others after mistaking accelerator for brake and plunging into canal.

The car fell more than 10 feet before it landed upside down in the water – with the force of the impact believed to have knocked all four people on board unconscious.

Locals frantically jumped in and tried to smash the windows and rescue them as they slowly submerged under the water.

According to Daily Mirror ,only one was rescued alive and rushed to hospital where she is in a coma, while the other three tragically died.

Reports said the 19-year-old girl, identified by her surname Wu – only had a learner’s licence and still needed to be accompanied by an adult.

She was reportedly driving her father’s car with her dad, 51, in the passenger seat and her sister, 16, and another friend, 17, in the back as they set off.

But soon after the inexperienced Wu started the engine, she reportedly stepped on the accelerator pedal – thinking it was the brake, causing the vehicle to charge forward and down the embankment of the canal.

All four were unconscious by the time they were pulled from the submerged vehicle, with paramedics pronouncing Wu, her dad, and the friend dead at the scene after unsuccessful attempts to revive them.

The tragic incident occurred in Dongfeng, which is in Zhongshan City in Guangdong Province in southern China.

Traffic Law Enforcement: 35 FRSC Officers Killed By Drivers

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At least 35 regular marshals of the Federal Road Safety Corps, FRSC, have been killed by motorists on highways across the country in the past one year.

 

The Niger State Commander of the FRSC, Susan Ajenge, who made this disclosure on the floor of the Niger State House of Assembly, said the development occurred when the officers were trying to enforce simple safety regulations on the highways.

 

She said another staff recently knocked down by a driver while trying to clear obstruction on the highway, is currently battling for life in a hospital.

 

She said the victim may loose his manhood, having gone through two operations.

 

The state legislatures had invited the Commander to defend the series of criticisms by the public against FRSC, over allegations of its officials intimidating and harassing motorists in its desperate move to generate revenue for government.

 

However, Ajenge defended the commission, lamenting that rather than obey simple traffic rules, motorists would turn around to criticise and attack FRSC officials.

Cross River: Gov. Ayade Suspends Commercial Drivers’ Levies

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Cross River State governor, Prof Ben Ayade, Wednesday suspended all levies paid by commercial drivers in the state.
The governor gave the order when members of the Unified Commercial Drivers Association in the state protested alleged the impounding of their vehicles, multiple taxation and a levy hike in his office in Calabar Wednesday.
Ayade who sent the Secretary to the State Government, Mrs Tina Agbor, to speak on his behalf said, “All your cars will be released. All the levies would be suspended, until the governor gets the papers and looks at them properly. When that is done, we would tell you what to pay.”
Chairman of the Association, Pastor Thomas Effiong Okon, who led the protesters, said, “We have always been supportive of the government. We have registered without complain. We gave government the support. We are not outsiders but part and parcel of the system. But it is an abnormality for people to sit on us because of their political appointments.

“On Monday we woke up and we saw our tickets had risen to N500 daily from N400. The N400 was even too high for us and we were even negotiating how to sort it out and the next thing it was just increased like that. As a peace loving person I met the State Security Adviser (SSA) on Monday, the issue was the same and they impounded our vehicles.

 

“We were with the SSA, Commissioner for Transport, the Department of Public Transportation (DOPT), and the Area Commander and sat down to sort out the issue because we don’t want to embarrass ourselves because this state is our state. They promised us yesterday that something was going to be done and it would go back to normal, but we discovered this was a falsehood.
“That is why we are here today to see the governor to tell us because we are over taxed. There is multiple taxation, multiple enforcement, so many government agencies are collecting money from taxes on daily basis.”

 

 

Credit : Today

Policeman Killed While Clearing Traffic For Kenyan President

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A police officer died on Sunday night after he was hit by a speeding motorist on Mombasa Road as he controlled traffic to pave the way for President Uhuru Kenyatta’s motorcade.

According to www.nation.co.ke, the officer, identified as Corporal Levi Njonjo, was in company with Embakasi OCPD Apollo Onyonyi, OCS Victor Nyongesa and three other officers near a diversion to the airport a few minutes before midnight when he was hit by the car.

His colleagues escaped unhurt when they saw the car approaching.

One of the officers, Mr Onyonyi, said, “We were clearing traffic awaiting the President’s arrival from the AU summit in Ethiopia.

“A speeding Toyota Which was driven by a man approached and did not stop. We jumped off the road but one of the officers was hit.”

Nairobi Traffic Commandant Edward Mwamburi said the driver of the car would be charged after investigations into the crash were completed, the website reported.

The driver was arrested and taken to the Embakasi Police Station. His vehicle was also detained at the station.

Woman Survives Car Crash But Is Killed Minutes Later While Going To Take Her Purse From The Wreckage

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A 25-year-old mother-of-one who survived a car crash on Sunday morning has died after going back to the vehicle to grab her purse, police claim.

Brittany Leith, mother of a three-year-old girl, was left completely uninjured when her Nissan hit the center median and flipped over onto its roof on Long Island’s Southern State Parkway at 3.54am.
However, after clambering out of the wreckage through a cracked window and being helped to the roadside by other drivers, Leith went back to her car to collect her belongings.
But before cops arrived,she returned to her vehicle in the left lane to retrieve property from it, as she walked back, she was hit and instantly killed by another car on the highway.
 
A state police car then arrived and was also struck from behind by another passing motorist. A state trooper was taken to the hospital to be treated for minor injuries.
Her 73-year-old grandmother Claire Hansen said she doesn’t know how they will break the news to Leith’s daughter.
‘We have to tell this little baby, this little doll,’ Hansen said. ‘How do we tell this little girl? . . . She keeps saying, “Where’s Mommy? Where’s Mommy?” It’s not supposed to happen this way.’
According to State Police Senior Investigator Thomas Hughes, Leith was adamant that she had to collect her belongings despite warnings from other motorists.
Source: NY Post

Video: Saudi Woman Defies Driving Ban

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A new video has surfaced on social media, purportedly showing a Saudi woman taking the wheel in defiance of a ban on driving by females in Saudi Arabia.

The footage, uploaded on the Internet on Sunday, displays a woman who appears to be driving in the Saudi capital city of Riyadh.

“I drive occasionally, but nobody has ever filmed me; However, this time I’ve decided to do it [myself],” the veiled woman says.

She also asks Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to lift the ban on women’s driving.

The development is the latest in the acts of defiance by Saudi women against the ban on driving by females in the country.

Many similar videos have been posted online, showing women taking the wheels.

In 2011, dozens of women took part in a campaign dubbed Women2Drive, challenging the ban. They posted on internet social networks pictures and videos of themselves while driving.

Saudi Arabia is the only country in the world that prohibits women from driving. The ban stems from a religious fatwa imposed by the country’s Wahhabi clerics. If women get behind the wheel in the kingdom, they may be arrested, sent to court and even flogged.

Saudi authorities have defied calls by international rights groups to end what has been described as a violation of women’s rights.

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Ex-lawmaker’s Driver Arranges Own Kidnap, Demands N10m Ransom

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The Rivers State Police Command has said it is on the trail of one Sylvanus Okon, a driver to a former members of the Rivers State House of Assembly (names withheld), who stage-managed his own abduction and demanded for the sum of N10 million from his boss as ransom.

This is as an aide to the immediate past Governor of Rivers State, Rt. Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, Mr. Henry Halliday on Wednesday afternoon escaped death when gunmen stormed his residence at the Abuloma area of Port Harcourt, the state capital.

LEADERSHIP reports that that the suspected assassins, numbering two were trying to gain access into Halliday’s residence when they were arrested by men of the Nigeria Police, following distress
calls from residents of the area.

Okon, according to the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Ahmad Muhammad, arranged with a gang of kidnappers to stage-manage his own abduction in order to get money from the former legislator.

Muhammad stated that a team of the State Anti-Robbery Squad (SARS), acting on information stormed the hide-out of the kidnappers in a forest near Omoku, headquarters of Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni local government area of the state, at about 6.45pm on June 3, 2015, where they arrested two members of the gang while Okon, and other members of the gang escaped with bullet wounds.

He said the two arrested suspects, ThankGod Ake and Uchechukwu Nwabueze confessed that the driver of the former lawmaker brought the idea to them so as to make money from his principal.

Muhammad said, “On June 3, 2015, at about 6:45 pm in a forest around Omoku, another team of the Special anti-Robbery Squad daringly stormed the camp of suspected kidnappers and arrested two of them while others fled with bullet wounds.

“Preliminary questioning indicated the Uche chukwu Nwabueze and Thankgod Ake are members of the gang that kidnapped Sylvanus Okon, driver of a recent past legislator in the Rivers State House Assembly. The driver in concert with the gang stage managed the kidnapping to get money from the ex-legislator.

“In the initial contact, the suspects demanded N10,000,000.00 (Ten Million Naira) ransom from him. Efforts are ongoing to arrest Sylvanus Okon, who at the time of the raid fled together with their other cohorts in crime when the Police stormed their hideout. “

In another development, the PPRO said SARS killed two suspected armed robbers on June 3, 2015, during a raid at a suspected hide-out of an armed robbery gang along Farm Road, Aluu in Ikwerre local government area of the state.

He said, “On 03/05/2015 at about 6:00 pm at Aluu Farm Road, a team of Special anti-Robbery Squad raided the enclave of a suspected gang of criminals that specialized in car snatching and engaged them.

“The operation yielded in recovery of five assorted stolen vehicles, two pump action guns, and multiple plate numbers while two suspected armed robbers got fatally wounded.”

3 Corps Members, Driver Die In Delta Car Crash

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No fewer than four people, including three National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) members, were   feared dead as a Nissan Primera travelling along the Kwale road in Delta State rammed into a stationary truck after its back tyre pulled off at the weekend.

The incident happened after Ishelegu junction as the driver was heading to Kwale.

It was gathered that the car driver, whose name could not be ascertained as at the time of filing this report, was said to have rushed his ill relative to an undisclosed hospital but, before they got to the Hospital, the (sick relative) gave up the ghost and his corpse was deposited in a morgue.

On his way back home with much grief, he was said to have picked up three NYSC members in his car. However, as he sped along the Kwale road, one of the back tyres pulled out and he lost control of the vehicle and rammed into a truck parked on the left side of the road.

When our correspondent visited the scene, the corpses of the dead traveler and driver had been taken away but traces of blood and the ruins of the damaged vehicle and truck were seen.

Meet the Nigerian Biker, Omo Alokwe, Preparing To Ride From England To Lagos

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Omo Alokwe, of Woodchurch Road, West Hampstead, will ride from Land’s End (England) to Lagos, in Nigeria, in November to raise funds for Medicine Sans Frontiers (MSF).

The business change analyst is taking on the challenge on his own and aims to raise £20,000 for MSF.

He will start from Land’s End and ride to Dover where he will travel on the Eurotunnel to France and then onto Morroco and through Senegal, Mali and Togo before reaching Nigeria.

In Nigeria, Mr Alokwe aims to break the world record for the longest motorcyle ride in a single
country. Over 16 weeks, he will aim to cover 30,000 miles through the country, where he grew up.

“I’ve always liked travelling and I wanted to do something different and really challenge myself,” said Mr Alokwe. “I’ve been riding motorbikes for 18 years.

As a child I used to muck around on my friends’ bikes and when I was older I got my licence. I love the camaraderie between bikers, the freedom and the wind in my hair.”

Mr Alokwe said he has chosen to support MSF as it is not “politically or religiously-affiliated” and “just deals with human crises”.

“I’ve always admired the work of MSF for their selflessness. Anywhere there’s any problems in the world, they are there. They are one of the best organisations working in Africa. I’ve always wanted to do something like this so I thought I should come out of my comfort zone.”

Hamhigh.co.uk/

Impeachment: Tension In Ekiti As Okada Riders, Drivers Move To Defend Fayose’s Mandate “With The Last Drop Of Our Blood”

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Tension is building up in Ekiti State as Governor Ayo Fayose asked the people to defend the mandate they gave to him following the impeachment process initiated by the All Progressives Congress lawmakers in the state assembly.

Already three groups, the Okada Riders Association, Road Transport Workers Association of Nigeria and National Union of Road Transport Workers have put their members on notice to look out for the APC lawmakers apparently to forestall their impeachment.

The 19 APC lawmakers in the Ekiti State House of Assembly had two weeks ago served a notice of impeachment on Mr. Fayose, a member of the Peoples Democratic Party, who was sworn into office last October.

The lawmakers were away from the state until recently, following the victory of the APC in the presidential election. During their absence, seven PDP legislators were performing legislative duties which many consider illegal.

Mr. Fayose, who sounded conciliatory after the Supreme Court affirmed his election last week, made a live television broadcast on Sunday asking Ekiti people to defend their mandate from the APC lawmakers, who he claimed were invading the state to impeach him.

He urged drivers and okada riders in particular to move out en masse to defend his mandate, saying: “My mandate is your mandate and you must defend it.”

The governor made the broadcast about twenty minutes after leaving a church service where a clergyman advised him to embrace peace and reconcile with the APC lawmakers by restoring their salaries and other benefits to enable them do their jobs.

Shortly after leaving the church, two statements emerged on the state radio as public announcements that were being broadcast intermittently.

A public announcement by the Chairman of the Okada Riders Association, Niyi Dahunsi “All Okada riders in Ekiti State are enjoined to be on the look-out for strange faces in the state from tomorrow. This is because it has been gathered that APC lawmakers working with Dr Adewale Omirin are planning to truncate the peace of the state by planning to invade the state with armed thugs.

“All Okada riders in the state should be mobilised to the House of Assembly by 6am tomorrow. Governor Fayose’s mandate is the mandate of okada riders. We must defend it with the last drop of our blood.”

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