cell - Blogs - TheBlackList Pub2024-03-28T15:28:53Zhttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/feed/tag/cellUber Killing Our Business, Lagos Taxi Drivers Lament (VIDEOS)https://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/uber-killing-our-business-lagos-taxi-drivers-lament-videos2017-07-02T13:30:00.000Z2017-07-02T13:30:00.000ZNana Baakan Agyiriwahhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/NanaBaakanAgyiriwah<div><div dir="ltr" style="text-align:left;"><div style="font-family:Cambria;margin:0in;"><span style="font-size:x-large;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WnuShzr_15M/WVj18atP6RI/AAAAAAACpSc/pMfSjo07p44AbwXOJkwaKUhDtkxdeUZFwCLcBGAs/s400/Uber%2BKilling%2Bour%2BBusiness.png" target="_blank"><img src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WnuShzr_15M/WVj18atP6RI/AAAAAAACpSc/pMfSjo07p44AbwXOJkwaKUhDtkxdeUZFwCLcBGAs/s400/Uber%2BKilling%2Bour%2BBusiness.png?width=320" width="320" class="align-left" alt="Uber%2BKilling%2Bour%2BBusiness.png?width=320" /></a>Nigeria: Special Report - Uber Killing Our Business, Lagos Taxi Drivers Lament</span></div><br /><br /><div style="text-align:center;"><iframe width="560" height="315" allowfullscreen="" frameborder="0" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/1pP-R8ugdNs?wmode=opaque"></iframe></div><br /><br /><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">By Oladeinde Olawoyin</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Jolted back to reality by the presence of this reporter having been dozing off for what appeared the whole day, Lawal Azeez sprang to his feet to make enquiries about this reporter's intended destination. Mr. Azeez was later joined by his colleagues, a group of old and middle-aged men. With desperation written boldly on their faces, they all scrambled amongst themselves to gain the attention of this reporter, whom they had erroneously identified as a potential passenger..</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">But the reporter's response, detailing his mission at the park, would later dash their hope, and they all wobbled back to their respective positions, awaiting the arrival of another passenger.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Mr. Azeez, 49, and his colleagues are taxi operators. But like others at the taxi park located around the Central Business District, CBD, Ikeja, their business has been disrupted by the activities of Uber operators.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Uber is an internet-enabled, relatively stress-free transportation system that allows passengers order for cabs wherever they are at fairly cheaper cost. The system, which started around 2014, has been widely accepted by internet-savvy Nigerians who prefer it for comfort and safety purposes.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Ah, Uber people have spoilt business for us; I must confess," said a disgruntled Mr. Azeez, when probed by PREMIUM TIMES.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"To be frank, I didn't make a kobo yesterday. These days, in a whole week, you may not get N5,000... which wasn't the situation before now," he lamented.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">When asked to give a rough estimate of how much he used to make daily before the alleged 'disruption' by Uber drivers, the Ogun State-born taxi driver said he couldn't give an exact estimate.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"But I know we make something in the region of ten-thousand plus daily on the average," he said.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"But as I speak to you, if you make N5,000, you must thank your stars. You, too, must have noticed it from the atmosphere here... imagine how everywhere appears deserted."</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Mr. Azeez's position was corroborated by another Taxi operator at the Ikeja CBD, Hassan Murphy.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Mr. Murphy, 43, explained that the activities of Uber drivers have been a source of sorrow for them as they no longer get patronage like they did in the past.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"If you notice, there are many taxis on ground here and their owners aren't here. They've all gone home out of anger," he said.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Many of them have been here for hours without seeing any passenger; they had to go."</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Mr. Murphy, who claimed to have built a house from his taxi transport business, also lamented that the development has taken a toll on his responsibilities among family members and at the home front.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"These days, people I used to give N20,000 in the past would count themselves lucky if I give them N3,000.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"It has become so bad here in this park that in a whole week, it may not get to your turn to pick up passengers," he said.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"That's apart from the fact that we pay dues too. They tax us N200 daily and N1,000 weekly, despite the poor patronage."</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;font-weight:bold;margin:0in;">"RECKLESS, UNSUSTAINABLE BUSINESS MODEL"</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"><span style="background-color:#FFFFFF;">According to Messrs. Azeez and Murphy, although the business model adopted by Uber operators affects their business as taxi drivers, it is "reckless and unsustainable" even for the Uber operators.</span></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Explaining further, they noted that what Uber drivers charge their passengers as transport fare is "ridiculous".</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"From here (CBD, Ikeja) to Maryland, Uber may charge N800," said Mr. Murphy.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"That's nonsense. How do you maintain your big car and service it and realise what you will use to cater for yourself from that money?</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"For a trip to the Airport, they charge as low as N600 sometimes, while we charge N2,000 or N1,500.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"See, let me tell you, unemployment is the reason people are into Uber. Ordinarily, the business is not sustainable," he said.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Mr. Azeez, on his part, agreed with his colleague, adding that many of the Uber operators are workers who got retrenched from companies due to the state of the economy.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Joblessness caused Uber, and it won't last for long" he said.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">On his part, another taxi operator who identified himself simply as Baba Sanje, noted that Uber would soon fade into extinction, like other similar initiatives that came before it.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Uber met us on ground, they will leave us in the system. We have survived other similar competitors for decades. This 'Yellow and Black' (Lagos taxi) has nowhere to go," he said in Yoruba.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;font-weight:bold;margin:0in;">"TAXI, MORE SECURE"</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Speaking further, the taxi drivers told PREMIUM TIMES that their taxi system is more secure and safer for passengers than Uber.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Citing a case of a passenger whose belonging was allegedly stolen by an Uber operator, Mr. Murphy explained that taxi drivers are more "loyal and trustworthy".</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Uber operators are ghost workers and they don't have any union. Passengers don't know them and you can't even spot them from outside unlike us that have our 'yellow and black' identity," he said.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"We are more loyal and trustworthy. When people lose their materials, we give them back; Uber people don't!"</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Mr. Azeez on his part added that Uber will soon fade away because, according to him, most of the operators are "running at a loss".</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Before Uber, there were Orange Cab, Easy Cab and Metro Taxi, they all folded up," he said.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Yes, there also was Afro Cab... LSPC, RED cab, Easy Ride, Oga taxi... they folded up.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"POD too came and folded up. But the 'Yellow and Black' taxi survived all of them. It will survive Uber too."</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Uber drivers, however, disagree with the assessment by the taxi operators.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Charles Daniels, a Uber driver, dismissed the account of the taxi drivers, saying they were pained by the popularity and acceptability of the Uber system.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"I won't say Uber is really profitable, especially now, but it still provides food for some of us," he said.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Another Uber operator who declined to have his name in print, said in response to PREMIUM TIMES enquiry on how much they make: "You know, we charge very reasonable amount... so we don't make huge figures like that... but it is something good... say thirty-something thousand naira or even more weekly.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"That's not too bad, I guess... and it still depends on days of the week and how energetic you are," he added.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;font-weight:bold;margin:0in;">PASSENGERS REACT</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Habeeb Adewale, 27, a regular user of Uber, who spoke with PREMIUM TIMES, explained that he prefers the system because of the ease it affords him to order for a cab wherever he is.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Wherever you are, Uber will locate you without stress," said Mr. Adewale, a banker who lives and works in Lagos.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"></div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">Femi Owolabi, another Lagos-based passenger, said the system is cheaper and safer, especially for night crawlers.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Uber, preferably (because of) the comfort, and the timely service," he told PREMIUM TIMES in an interview when asked about his preference.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">For James Abiola, an IT expert, the Uber system is preferable because of its cheaper cost and comfort.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;">"Sometimes, Uber allows you comfortably ride an exotic car with less than a thousand naira," he said, amid laughter.</div><div style="font-family:Cambria;font-size:14pt;margin:0in;"><br /> <a href="http://allafrica.com/stories/201706190205.html?aa_source=nwsltr-nigeria-en" target="_blank"><b>SOURCE</b></a></div></div></div>Is Non-Melanoma Skin Cancer Too Dangeroushttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/is-non-melanoma-skin-cancer-too-dangerous2012-01-31T11:21:20.000Z2012-01-31T11:21:20.000ZKumar Mannuhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/KumarMannu<div><p align="justify">Jefferson is a young healthy middle aged man. He is a tour operator and keeps on travelling most of the time. But past few days I saw him little tensed and seen him avoiding his neighbors like the way he was avoiding me. I asked him what the matter with him. He said he is afraid and pretty tensed as doctor has told him that he is suffering from skin cancer. Really a person with such a sound health and charisma will fall pray of tension when he will get to know that he is suffering from cancer. I checked his report and got to know that he has developed Non melanoma skin cancer on his collar bone. After going through it thoroughly I took a deep breath of relief as it was the initial stage and the tumor is not developed properly and it is tender.</p><p align="justify">I am not a doctor but I do have some knowledge in medical science and in some common diseases which are in loose at USA. Skin cancer is of two types, it is; Melanoma and Non-Melanoma. Melanoma is not so common in this country but it is much more fatal and causes majority of deaths related to skin cancer. On the other hand Non-Melanoma refers to the skin cancer which generally occurs in upper layers of skin. It is the most common form of skin cancer. Every year more than 1.3 million people are diagnosed with non melanoma skin cancer.</p><p align="justify">Modern techniques of surgeries and usage of chemotherapy has made this disease a risk free affair. Depending upon up on the stage of the cancer diagnosed doctors undertake preventive measures to eradicate it. Believe it or not 99.8% cases have been operated successfully and Jefferson is not the only guy suffering from skin cancer.</p><p align="justify">Non-Melanoma skin cancer can further be classified in to two sections. They are <a href="http://www.wederm.com/Basal-Cell-Carcinoma-BCC">Basal Cell Carcinoma</a> (BCC) and <a href="http://www.wederm.com/Squamous-Cell-Carcinoma-SCC">Squamous Cell Carcinoma</a>(SCC). BCC is the most common form skin cancer in USA. Almost majority of individuals gets tangled with it. But it hardly kills anyone. In 80% of the cases it is found in head and neck of a person. SCC is the second most common type of skin cancer and accounts only 10% of Non-melanoma skin cancer.</p><p align="justify">In both the cases considerably there is less chance of spreading of tumor on the body. There is only 0.5% chances of BCC to spread over the body. The risk is slightly higher in case of SCC it spread over the body in 4% cases. Very marginal is not it. Treatment for non melanoma skin cancer comprises of surgery, radiotherapy and chemotherapy.</p><p align="justify">It is cured within a short span of time if treatment is done in a proper way. You will come across lot of people who had this disease before but now they are free from it and happily living their life. Need not worry friends medical science has developed in a massively and there is always a solution. Non-melanoma skin cancer is not a deadly tumor it occurs due to over exposure to sun’s ultra violet rays in most of the cases so by now you may have understood what should be the precaution to calm it.</p></div>Better Understanding of Skin Cancer to Come Out Of Mythhttps://www.theblacklist.net/profiles/blogs/better-understanding-of-skin-cancer-to-come-out-of-myth2011-12-27T11:30:00.000Z2011-12-27T11:30:00.000ZKumar Mannuhttps://www.theblacklist.net/members/KumarMannu<div><p align="justify">Cancer is the most dreaded disease for humans and the tumor which develops in our body squeezes all your energy and happiness out of you. Worldwide billions of people die due to cancer. There are so many researches which have been happening to cure the disease and to eradicate its existence in human body at the very moment it gets traced. Government has been spending lot of money on research and development of a better cure and medicines. Cancer is nothing but a tumor which occurs in human body and keeps spreading rapidly over the effected parts. There are many types of cancer. Some are very dangerous in nature and few can be cured easily. One among such is Skin Cancer which is the most common Cancer diagnosed in America and the matter of fact is that it is the most easily preventable cancer. People just fear the word Cancer which makes them more ill when they are required to be optimistic by heart.</p><p align="justify">In United States of America, Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer. More than 3.5 million skin cancers in over two million people are diagnosed annually. Ironically there are more new cases of skin cancer then other cancers of Breast, prostate and lungs etc. Reports depict that one (1) among every Five (5) citizen of America suffers from Skin cancer. In 2000 A.D Colorado, Delaware, Idaho, Kansas, Kentucky, Nevada, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Washington, and Wyoming together experienced 390,000 cases of skin cancer compared to other provinces in USA. Almost 800,000 people has a history of suffering with melanoma and 13 million are living with a history of non- melanoma skin cancer. Non-Melanoma is more prevalent and cases of it come almost every day.</p><p align="justify">You can categorize Non-Melanoma into 2. It is Basal cell carcinoma (BCC) and Squamous cell carcinoma (SCC). Below are some facts and figures which have been mentioned to give a clear picture of both the cases. Let us start us with the former.</p><p><b><a href="http://www.wederm.com/Basal-Cell-Carcinoma-BCC">Basal cell carcinoma (BCC)</a></b></p><p align="justify">It is the most common form of skin cancer and is also the most common cancer in the world with ever rising numbers. It can cause significant destruction and disfigurement by invading surrounding tissues so it is still considered as malignant. To make it simpler a person can categorize it into 3 groups, based on location and difficulty of therapy:</p><ul><li>Superficial BCC- Very responsive and only BCC which can be treated with topical chemotherapy.</li><li>Infiltrative BCC- Difficult to treat with conservative methods such as electrodessiccation and curettage.</li><li>Nodular BCC- It is the encounter morphologic features of several variants of basal-cell cancer in the same tumor.<p align="justify">It is the most common cancer in Caucasians, Hispanics, Chinese, Japanese, and other Asian populations. Risk of becoming BCC affected arises due to the following factors:</p></li><li>Blue or green eyes.</li><li>Family history of skin cancer.</li><li>Weakened immune system.</li><li>Received radiation therapy.</li><li>Exposure to coal tar, pitch, creosote, or arsenic.<p align="justify">It does not travel through your blood stream for this reason it can be treated promptly with dermatologic surgical techniques. Biopsy is required to diagnose skin cancer. Exposure to sunlight is the factor in about two-thirds of skin cancer and only one- third occurs in non-sun-exposed areas, therefore doctors recommend sun screens with at least SPF 30.</p><p><b>Squamous Cell Carcinoma (SCC)</b></p><p align="justify">It is the second most common type of skin cancer; together these two are referred as no melanoma skin cancer. Among the one million cases of skin cancer diagnosed in USA, about 20% will be SCC. It is mainly caused by exposure to the sun’s Ultra Violet (UV) rays. Factors involved in occurrence of SCC are as follows:</p></li><li>Fair skin.</li><li>Blonde or red hair; blue or green eyes.</li><li>History of indoor tanning.</li><li>Diagnosed with actinic keratoses (AKs).</li><li>Family history of skin cancer.</li><li>Weakened immune system (immunosuppression).<p align="justify">History of exposure to coal tar products or arsenic. It is also referred to as "epidermoid carcinoma" and "squamous cell epithelioma". It is more aggressive on persons those who are suffering from lymphoproliferative disorders (i.e. leukemia) regardless of their location. Other form of cancers such as Head and Neck cancer, Esophagus cancer, Lung cancer and in Prostate develops due to SCC. An estimated 700,000 cases are diagnosed each year in the US, resulting in approximately 2,500 deaths. Males are affected with SCC at a ratio of 2:1 in comparison to females. Aging being the main reason for this disease, peak incidence is usually around 66 years old.</p><p align="justify"><a href="http://www.wederm.com/The-Mohs-Surgery-florida">Mohs Surgery</a> is the common and frequently practiced treatment of choice for <a href="http://www.wederm.com/Squamous-Cell-Carcinoma-SCC">Squamous Cell Carcinoma</a> Method is used for the treatment of SCC in mouth, neck and throat. And it has been successful in most of the cases. The advantage of this surgery is that it allows the excellent amount of surrounding healthy tissue to remain intact reducing the size of the scar. It allows for the removal of skin cancer with lesser surgical margin and a high cure rate. So it is always better to visit a doctor when a person feel the symptoms on him or her and if diagnosed at a right time then it can be cured in proper way without any hassle and complications.</p></li></ul><p></p></div>