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| Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko |
The governor stated this in Akure on Wednesday at a programme in honour of the Founder, Oodua Peoples Congress, Dr. Frederick Fasehun.
Wednesday, November 9, 2016
Tuesday, November 8, 2016
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| Trump, Clinton |
The following is a running tally of states claimed by presidential hopefuls Democrat Hillary Clinton and Republican Donald Trump on Tuesday in their race for the White House, according to network projections.
Candidates are racing to hit the magic number of 270 electoral votes, an absolute majority of the 538
Residents of the hamlet cast their votes at midnight. Out of the six votes cast, Hillary Clinton beat Donald Trump four votes to two, a result that may foreshadow voting trends hours later in the rest of polling stations across America.
Libertarian Gary Johnson received one vote, and Mitt Romney received a surprise write-in ballot, USA Today reported.
According to New Hampshire law, communities with fewer than 100 voters can open their polls at midnight and close them as soon as all registered voters have cast their ballots.
The best known of these three towns, Dixville Notch has been voting at midnight every election since 1960. Neil Tillotson, the former owner of the Balsams Grant Resort Hotel, which closed in 2011, started midnight voting in Dixville in 1960 to stir up publicity for the resort. Almost all of the Dixville voters are employees of the resort.
This could be Dixville’s last year in the election spotlight, however.
Les Otten, a New England businessman, bought the Balsams and plans to redevelop it into a massive ski resort. That could bring the population in Dixville over 100 people, thereby ending its midnight voting tradition.
Trump wins Millsfield
Millsfield, located just over 12 miles down the road from Dixville Notch, is the newest town to get in on the act. Millsfield began midnight voting as early as 1952 (no one seems certain exactly when) and stopped the practice in the 1960s (again, no one seems certain exactly when). The town was invited to take the tradition back up last year by New Hampshire’s secretary of State, in honour of the 100th anniversary of the New Hampshire primary.
In other results, Clinton also beat Trump in Hart’s Location 17-14, but Trump was the overwhelming favourite in Millsfield, with a 16-4 edge. Overall, in the three tiny towns, Trump won 32 votes, while Clinton got 25.
Libertarian Gary Johnson picked up three votes. Bernie Sanders, John Kasich and 2012 Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney got write-in votes.
Meanwhile both Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump raced through several battleground states on Monday in a last-ditch attempt to encourage their supporters to show up and vote on Tuesday.
Clinton sought to capture more support from Latinos, African-Americans and young people, while Trump looked to win over disaffected Democrats and rev up a middle class that he said has been side-lined by the political establishment.
Clinton held the biggest rally of her campaign in Philadelphia on Monday night, drawing a crowd that the city’s Fire Department put at 33,000 to hear her and President Barack Obama, first lady Michelle Obama and rockers Bruce Springsteen and Jon Bon Jovi.
“Tomorrow we face the test of our time,” Clinton told supporters, saying they could decide what sort of country they wanted to live in. “We choose to believe in a hopeful, inclusive, big-hearted America.”
Obama, who campaigned earlier in the day for Clinton in Ann Arbor, Michigan, reiterated his charge that Trump is “temperamentally unfit to be commander in chief,” and said Clinton offered an experienced and accomplished alternative.
“You don’t just have to vote against someone, you have someone extraordinary to vote for,” Obama said. “She will work and she will deliver, she won’t just tweet.”
Trump told voters at an evening rally in Manchester, New Hampshire, they had one question facing them at the ballot box on Tuesday.
“Do you want America to be ruled by the corrupt political class or do you want America to be ruled again by the people?” he asked. “Tomorrow the American working class will strike back.”
With only hours left before Election Day, the Clinton campaign was boosted by Sunday’s unexpected announcement by FBI Director James Comey that the agency stood by its July decision not to press any criminal charges in an investigation of Clinton’s email practices while she was secretary of state.
The Reuters/Ipsos States of the Nation project gave Clinton a 90 percent chance of defeating Trump, seeing her on track to win 303 Electoral College votes out of the 270 needed, to Trump’s 235.
With surveys indicating a tight race in Michigan, which Democrats have long counted on winning, both candidates made campaign appearances there. Pennsylvania, another vote-rich state, was also seen as fertile ground by both camps in the closing hours of their campaigns.
Monday, November 7, 2016
Hillary Clinton pledged if elected to unify a country divided by one of the bitterest presidential campaigns in American history, as she began making her closing arguments to millions of voters on Monday.
“I have some work to bring the country together,” the Democratic nominee told reporters as she boarded a plane for the first of four final-day rallies before Tuesday’s election.
“I really do want to be the president for everybody — people who vote for me, people who vote against me,” she said, criticizing her Republican rival Donald Trump for “these splits, these divides that have been not only exposed but exacerbated by the campaign on the other side.”
On the frenzied final day of their historic fight, the two candidates are holding blow-out rallies in the handful of swing states that will decide who leads the United States.
Clinton held just a 2.2 percent lead over Trump early on Monday in a four-way race including third-party candidates, according to a RealClearPolitics.com average of polls.
Security has been beefed up in and around Benin, the capital of Edo, ahead of President Muhammadu Buhari two-days official visit to the state.
The President who commences the visit on Monday, is expected to inaugurate a number of projects executed by Governor Adams Oshiomhole, who is vacating office by November 12.
The men and officers of Police, Army, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, have taken up strategic positions in the areas the President is expected to pass through and the project sites in the capital city.
There is heavy presence of security personnel at the Airport and environs, Golf Course Road and Government House area.
Heavy security was also noticed in adjoining streets close to the airport, while security patrol vehicles, manned by the police and army, were seen patrolling airport road.
The presidential visit created traffic challenges in the city on Monday morning, especially Airport road and Siloko road, a road constructed by the current administration which the President is also expected to inaugurate during the visit.
Part of activities lined up for the visit, is the planned courtesy call by the President to the new Benin monarch, Oba Ewuare II, after which he is expected to inaugurate the new central hospital, Siloko road and 2nd East Circular road among others.
On Tuesday, Buhari is expected to inaugurate some projects, including the new Edo University, Iyamoh, in Edo North and Central Senatorial Districts of the state.
Oshiomhole, who was first inaugurated on November 12, 2008 and won his second term in 2012, is expected to hand over to the governor-elect, Mr. Godwin Obaseki, on Saturday
Ade Adesomoju, Abuja
Prosecution witness, Mr. Michael Wetkas, in the ongoing trial of the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, before the Code of Conduct Tribunal, said on Monday that the claim by Saraki that he bought a property in Lagos with proceeds of sale of rice and sugar was false.
Wetkas, who was being cross-examined for the 13th day by the defence, told the Danladi Umar-led CCT that the Senate President actually bought the properties at 17A and B, McDonald Street, Ikoyi, Lagos, in 2006 with proceeds of loans he obtained from the Guaranty Trust Bank.
Saraki is being prosecuted by the Federal Government before the CCT on 16 counts, including false and anticipatory asset declaration, which he allegedly made as governor of Kwara State between 2003 and 2011.
At the resumed hearing of the case on Monday, Wetkas was asked by the defence lawyer, Mr. Paul Usoro (SAN), to read from the various asset declaration forms completed by the Senate President and earlier admitted by the CCT as exhibits.
In his asset declaration form of June 3, 2011 which he submitted at the end of his second term as governor, Saraki, declared that he acquired the property in 2006, and five others in 1990, 1991, 1992, 1996 and 2000 with proceeds of sales of rice and sugar.
Meanwhile, he earlier declared in his asset declaration form dated July 11, 2007 for his end of first term as governor, and at the beginning of his second term as governor, that he acquired the properties through loan worth N497m.
The witness explained that the loan initially obtained was structured to be paid quarterly in five tranches but that as the then Kwara State governor, he was obtaining additional loans from the bank which led to the subsequent restructuring of the loan.
Wetkas, as directed by the defence lawyer, also read from the GT Bank statement of the Senate President covering the period 2005 to 2015.
The bank statement was earlier admitted by the CCT as Exhibit 7.
Wetkas confirmed that Saraki obtained three loans in the sums of N380m, N380m and N400m in connection with the properties acquired by Saraki.
He said, “In 2006, the balance was N9,779,109. 79m before the loan was credited. This first loan taken was used to pay the one before. The loan amount was N380m.
“The property it was used to buy was worth N256.3m. There was five per cent charge translated into N12,815,000. It was liquidated on February 5, 2007.
“When the loan was liquidated, it took the balance to a debit balance of N231,552,804.93. Then another loan was taken of N380m on the same February 5, 2007. The second loan was taken to defray the debit. It now gave a credit balance of N98m.
“As of the 2007 declaration, there was debit outstanding of the loan of up to N300m, which was not declared in 2007 declaration. There were other inflows into account the purposes of paying.
“On August 27, 2009, the balance on the account shows an inflow into the account of N100m through banker’s cheque. On July 31, 2009, it shows that the account was in debit of about N93,933,654.15.
“After the inflow of N100m on August 27, it went into credit balance of N6,066,345.6. On April 30, 2009, the account was in debit position of N17m. The on the same date, there was loan disbursement of N400m.”
