2007年VOA标准英语-Delays, Accusations Mar Nigeria Vote Before Sat

By Nico Colombant
Abuja
20 April 2007

Delays and accusations¹ of rigging are marring Nigeria's presidential and legislative² elections, even before polls open on Saturday.  VOA's Nico Colombant reports from Abuja.

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Many fear Nigeria elections will be chaotic

More than 60 million ballots⁵ had to be reprinted to include the broom symbol for Vice⁶ President Atiku Abubakar's Action Congress party.

Election officials say the new ballots are only starting to arrive after being printed abroad, and that polls will open at 10:00 a.m. Nigeria time on Saturday, two hours later than initially⁷ scheduled.

Some observers say the ballots were produced in South Africa, and that by midday Friday they were still not in Nigeria. 

The government declared Friday a national holiday, but trucks and military planes were apparently⁸ on standby to take ballots to polling stations.

This week, the country's supreme⁹ court reinstated the controversial vice president as a candidate. He had been excluded because of accusations of corruption¹⁰, which he denies. 

He says he believes the elections will be marred¹¹ by fraud and that he is only running so he can contest them later in the courts.

His party said soldiers in the north intercepted¹² a truck full of completed ballots, but election officials have denied the charges.  They said the ballots were not yet in Nigeria at the alleged¹³ time of the incident.

In a crowded field of more than 20 presidential candidates, the two favorites are the ruling party's Umaru Musa Yar'Adua and the opposition's main candidate, General Muhammadu Buhari, the former military ruler. Both are Muslim northerners.

To avoid a runoff, a candidate must get the highest number of votes and also a quarter of votes in 24 of 36 states.

Outgoing President Olusegun Obasanjo, a southern Christian¹⁴, has said he hopes the election will be better organized than last week's state polls, which were marred by delays, underage voting, a chaotic release of results, decisions for revotes in certain areas, and violence, including the theft of ballot⁴ boxes while the voting was ongoing¹⁵.  

Human rights campaigner and observer, Festus Okoye, says Nigerians should try to vote and also make sure their vote counts.

Observer Okoye urges Nigerians to vote despite problems

"They must remain on course and they must keep faith in the democratic process," he said.  "There is some level of political disengagement between the people and the democratic process. Our challenge is to re-engage the people in the democratic process, and tell them that no matter what the problems are, whatever the weaknesses of the system and no matter the challenges they are facing, they are better off in living under a democratic system of government that guarantees our freedom and also gives us a voice to voice what we do not like in this system."

About 60 million people are registered to vote.  They will also select 360 house legislators and 109 senators.

The outgoing parliament voted against proposals to amend¹⁶ the constitution and allow President Obasanjo to seek a third term.

If the election comes off, it will mark the first handover of an elected president to another one since independence from Britain in 1960.

1 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

2 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。

3 chaotic   

adj.混沌的，一片混乱的，一团糟的

参考例句：

• Things have been getting chaotic in the office recently.最近办公室的情况越来越乱了。
• The traffic in the city was chaotic.这城市的交通糟透了。

4 ballot   

n.（不记名）投票，投票总数，投票权；vi.投票

参考例句：

• The members have demanded a ballot.会员们要求投票表决。
• The union said they will ballot members on whether to strike.工会称他们将要求会员投票表决是否罢工。

5 ballots   

n.投票表决( ballot的名词复数 )；选举；选票；投票总数v.（使）投票表决( ballot的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• They're counting the ballots. 他们正在计算选票。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The news of rigged ballots has rubbed off much of the shine of their election victory. 他们操纵选票的消息使他们在选举中获得的胜利大为减色。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 vice   

n.坏事；恶习；[pl.]台钳，老虎钳；adj.副的

参考例句：

• He guarded himself against vice.他避免染上坏习惯。
• They are sunk in the depth of vice.他们堕入了罪恶的深渊。

7 initially   

adv.最初，开始

参考例句：

• The ban was initially opposed by the US.这一禁令首先遭到美国的反对。
• Feathers initially developed from insect scales.羽毛最初由昆虫的翅瓣演化而来。

8 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。

9 supreme   

adj.极度的，最重要的；至高的，最高的

参考例句：

• It was the supreme moment in his life.那是他一生中最重要的时刻。
• He handed up the indictment to the supreme court.他把起诉书送交最高法院。

10 corruption   

n.腐败，堕落，贪污

参考例句：

• The people asked the government to hit out against corruption and theft.人民要求政府严惩贪污盗窃。
• The old man reviled against corruption.那老人痛斥了贪污舞弊。

11 marred   

adj. 被损毁, 污损的

参考例句：

• The game was marred by the behaviour of drunken fans. 喝醉了的球迷行为不轨，把比赛给搅了。
• Bad diction marred the effectiveness of his speech. 措词不当影响了他演说的效果。

12 intercepted   

拦截( intercept的过去式和过去分词 )； 截住； 截击； 拦阻

参考例句：

• Reporters intercepted him as he tried to leave the hotel. 他正要离开旅馆，记者们把他拦截住了。
• Reporters intercepted him as he tried to leave by the rear entrance. 他想从后门溜走，记者把他截住了。

13 alleged   

a.被指控的，嫌疑的

参考例句：

• It was alleged that he had taken bribes while in office. 他被指称在任时收受贿赂。
• alleged irregularities in the election campaign 被指称竞选运动中的不正当行为

14 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

15 ongoing   

adj.进行中的，前进的

参考例句：

• The problem is ongoing.这个问题尚未解决。
• The issues raised in the report relate directly to Age Concern's ongoing work in this area.报告中提出的问题与“关心老人”组织在这方面正在做的工作有直接的关系。

16 amend   

vt.修改，修订，改进；n.[pl.]赔罪，赔偿

参考例句：

• The teacher advised him to amend his way of living.老师劝他改变生活方式。
• You must amend your pronunciation.你必须改正你的发音。