VOA常速英语2007-Senegal's Senate Elects Replacement for Presiden

By Phuong Tran
Dakar
03 October 2007

Senegal's newly-formed senate has selected its leader who is next in line for the presidency¹ if President Abdoulaye Wade² is not able to complete his term. Meanwhile, analysts⁴ say the largely one-party legislature, comprised of two houses, gives the president unchecked lawmaking powers. Phuong Tran has more from Dakar.

A change to the constitution earlier this year makes ruling party member Pape Diop, elected Wednesday as senate president, the country's interim⁵ leader if the octogenarian president, Abdoulaye Wade, cannot serve.

Diop was one of 65 senators appointed by President Wade. The other 35 won in a vote boycotted⁶ by major opposition⁷ parties. Of the 35, only one belongs to a non-presidential party.

By boycotting⁸ both recent legislative⁹ elections, the opposition has created a virtual one-party government.

The country's second house, the assembly, has 150 legislators, with 131 from the president's ruling coalition¹⁰.

Senegalese legal analyst³ Abdoulaye Dieye says Senegal's largely one-party government, in place for the next five years, gives President Wade unchecked powers.

Dieye says the president is supported by both the Assembly and Senate. He says the newly-formed Senate, stacked in favor of the ruling coalition, does not have the power to stop the president from adopting whatever law he wants.

But the head of Mr. Wade's political cabinet, Babacar Gaye, dismisses the criticism.

Gaye says it is not uncommon¹¹ in other democratic countries to have presidential appointees in lawmaking institutions.

He cited Britain, where he says some of the lawmakers are nominated by the queen.

 

He was, apparently¹², referring to the House of Lords where in the past some seats were traditionally inherited. Other members were appointed by the ruling party and approved by the monarch¹³.

After his first election in 2000, President Abdoulaye Wade dissolved the senate, calling it a waste of money. Six years later, the second-term president reinstated the lawmaking body, and increased the number of presidential appointees from 20 to 65.

The president has also faced criticism, including from members of his own coalition, for re-organizing the government to position his son Karim Wade to succeed him as president, charges the president has denied.

1 presidency   

n.总统(校长，总经理)的职位(任期)

参考例句：

• Roosevelt was elected four times to the presidency of the United States.罗斯福连续当选四届美国总统。
• Two candidates are emerging as contestants for the presidency.两位候选人最终成为总统职位竞争者。

2 wade   

v.跋涉，涉水；n.跋涉

参考例句：

• We had to wade through the river to the opposite bank.我们只好涉水过河到对岸。
• We cannot but wade across the river.我们只好趟水过去。

3 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

4 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

5 interim   

adj.暂时的，临时的；n.间歇，过渡期间

参考例句：

• The government is taking interim measures to help those in immediate need.政府正在采取临时措施帮助那些有立即需要的人。
• It may turn out to be an interim technology.这可能只是个过渡技术。

6 boycotted   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Athletes from several countries boycotted the Olympic Games. 有好几国的运动员抵制奥林匹克运动会。
• The opposition party earlier boycotted the Diet agenda, demanding Miyaji's resignation. 反对党曾杯葛国会议程，要宫路下台。

7 opposition   

n.反对，敌对

参考例句：

• The party leader is facing opposition in his own backyard.该党领袖在自己的党內遇到了反对。
• The police tried to break down the prisoner's opposition.警察设法制住了那个囚犯的反抗。

8 boycotting   

抵制，拒绝参加( boycott的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• They're boycotting the shop because the people there are on strike. 他们抵制那家商店，因为那里的店员在罢工。
• The main opposition parties are boycotting the elections. 主要反对党都抵制此次选举。

9 legislative   

n.立法机构，立法权；adj.立法的，有立法权的

参考例句：

• Congress is the legislative branch of the U.S. government.国会是美国政府的立法部门。
• Today's hearing was just the first step in the legislative process.今天的听证会只是展开立法程序的第一步。

10 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

11 uncommon   

adj.罕见的，非凡的，不平常的

参考例句：

• Such attitudes were not at all uncommon thirty years ago.这些看法在30年前很常见。
• Phil has uncommon intelligence.菲尔智力超群。

12 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

13 monarch   

n.帝王，君主，最高统治者

参考例句：

• The monarch's role is purely ceremonial.君主纯粹是个礼仪职位。
• I think myself happier now than the greatest monarch upon earth.我觉得这个时候比世界上什么帝王都快乐。