The Dares and Truths of the US Presidential Election Vanessa Obioha

November 9, 2016 will be indelibly etched in the history of the world for the shocking emergence of Donald J.Trump as the 45th US president. In an unprecedented turn of events that left the world gobsmacked, Trump defeated the Democratic Party candidate, Hillary Clinton in the presidential race.

From the onset, the odds were cruelly stacked against him. He had no repertoire in governance skills. He is perceived as a misogynist and a racist. What’s more, he is a Republican. His rival, Hilary Clinton was considered a better candidate for obvious reasons. Her husband was a former US president. She was a former Secretary of State and knew the politics of the White House like the back of her hand.

No one saw it coming. Even some of the prophets and clairvoyants already proclaimed him the loser.
Undoubtedly, it is natural that prophets, clergymen and clairvoyants predict the future sometimes. After all, that is their unique gift. And in a universal contest like the US Presidential elections, there are bound to be predictions.

So when certain prophets started predicting ahead of the elections in favour of their candidates, their followers were influenced to take it as the gospel.

These visions of the future come in different shades. Some are truths, some are products of an imaginary mind fuelled by personal beliefs, some are influenced by the projections in the media and of course, guided by sentiments. Albeit, it is relevant that these voices be heard, that they create a sense of truth in their followers and inadvertently be seen as a true oracle of men. The medium used also differs. For instance, animals are copiously used nowadays to foretell the future.

Joining the circle of prophets are individuals who made daring statements should their preferred candidate lose the election.

However, the cookies crumbled on Wednesday morning when the results were finally announced. Expectedly, the predictions from these divine seers were magnified and the accuracy of their visions were critically questioned. And of course, the individuals who made outrageous dares are forced to either eat the humble pie or fulfil their threats.

Below is a list of all the prophets and animals who either predicted rightly or wrongly the outcome of the US elections, and the individuals as well who threatened to do the impossible.

•T.B. Joshua: Temitope Balogun Joshua is known for his controversial prophecies. The general overseer of Synagogue Church of all Nations announced to his eager congregation on Sunday, that come November 8, 2016, a woman (apparently Hilary Clinton) will be new president of US. To be sure, it was revealed to him 10 days earlier. Other prophecies that named Trump the winner must have seen theirs earlier, perhaps 15 days ago. Although he said Clinton would face many challenges, she would however be victorious. Who wouldn’t believe the man who had predicted many global events including the missing Malaysian flight MH370? Yet, on Wednesday, the man of God came under fire by many who considered him a false prophet. Whether he saw it in a clear or blurred vision is a question for another day.

•Boots (a goat): Psychics use different media to see the future. In southern Scotland, a three-year-old goat is considered a great clairvoyant. Its past predictions include Britain vote on Brexit which was accurate. So it was not uncanny to ask the four-legged animal to look into the future of the US elections. Presented with the two candidates, Boots picked Clinton by biting on the card with her name. Immediately, it became a media and internet sensation. Will Boots be given the boot now that Trump emerged the winner of the election?

•Geda (monkey): Popularly known as the ‘king of prophets’, the Chinese monkey predicted that the Republican candidate will clinch the presidential slot. Called Geda, the primate after a deliberate thought ate the bananas close to a life-size photo of Trump over that of Clinton at the Shinyahu Ecological Tourism Park. To further drive home his choice, he kissed Trump on his lips. Indeed, the five year-old accurate predictions continue to blaze a trail as the monkey is said to have predicted the outcome of popular football matches.

•Wole Soyinka: The Nobel laureate crossed the rubicon when he boldly stated that he would tear his green card should Trump win. Expectedly, Nigerians came after him when Trump was officially declared the winner on Wednesday morning. A slew of memes about his threat floated on the internet. The professor is yet to fulfil or rescind his threat.

•Chanakya III (fish): Still on animals, a Chinese fish also prophesied that Donald Trump will occupy the White House. Two boats carrying feed and bearing pictures of the presidential candidates were released into the tank. The Chennai fish incredibly ate the feed with the Republican nominee seven times. Yummy. Organised by the Indian Community Welfare Organisation, it was declared that Trump will be the winner of the election.

•Dr. Chris Kwakpovwe: On the November 8, 2016 message of his daily devotional book, Our Daily Manna, Dr. Chris Kwakpovwe declared Hilary Clinton the winner of the election. Titled ‘Hilary Clinton: No Mistakes with God!’, the Man of God lauded Clinton for her amazing achievement as the first woman to capture the nomination of a major political party in 240 years of United States History. He further sealed his declaration by adding that “She would eventually become the first female president of the US election taking place today, November 8th.”

•Primate Ayodele: Another notable prophet, Primate Ayodele also lent his voice to the US elections. Without mincing words, he disclosed that America will indeed have her first female president. However, he added a caveat: Hilary should not relent on her efforts because Trump will deploy all manner of tactics to unsettle her including blackmail. Therefore, she should heed to his advise. Although, he promised to reveal the key states where Clinton will claim victory in subsequent days leading to the election. That day never came to pass, neither did his prophecy.

•Basketmouth: Is there a chance that the stand-up comedian will make good his threat to run for presidency in 2019 if Donald Trump wins? Only time will tell.

•Sale of Plastic Cups: Downtown in East Hampton, New York, a shop that sells plastic cups designed with presidential logos forecast that Clinton will win. Named the Monogram Shop, the owner Valerie Smith was able to tell who will occupy the White House by the number of sales of each of the nominee designed cups. Trump took an early lead but was later defeated by Clinton. The veracity of the predictive power of the plastic cups have been proven right in the last three races. What happened this time? Did the owner miscalculate?

•Jesse Bravo: New York City-based celebrity psychic medium Jesse Bravo also went off the mark. He reportedly said “Hillary’s gonna win by a major, major number. It’s not even going to be a competition.” This will be the first time Bravo who has appeared on MTV, New York Times and Wall Street Journal will give a wrong outcome of events.