2006年VOA标准英语-Philippine President Vows to Stay in Power

By Nancy-Amelia Collins
Jakarta
24 February 2006

 
Gloria Arroyo¹ 
  

Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo was swept to power in 2001 after a popular movement ousted² her predecessor³, vowing⁴ to end corruption⁵ and bring economic stability. But her time in office has been plagued with charges of graft⁶ and vote rigging. She survived a 2003 mutiny and an impeachment⁷ attempt last September. Friday the 58-year-old leader declared a state of emergency, claiming rogue⁸ elements in the armed forces were plotting to bring her down.

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In an ironic⁹ twist, Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo declared the state of emergency on the day the country was set to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the four-day "people power" revolt that toppled the late dictator Ferdinand Marcos.

Mrs. Arroyo says during the past months her political opponents have conspired¹⁰ with extremists on both the right and the left to bring down the elected government. She warns those who threaten "treason" will feel the full weight of the law.

Mrs. Arroyo, a former economist¹¹ who attended Georgetown University in Washington, has vowed¹² to stay in office until her term ends in 2010.

But Sheila Coronel, author and expert on politics in the Philippines says the state of emergency will further hurt her already unpopular presidency¹³.

Student protesters shout slogans as they block a busy street to call for the ouster of Philippine President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo in Manila on Tuesday Feb. 21, 2006  
  
"People here have a very visceral reaction to anything that smacks¹⁴ of martial¹⁵ law, or of dictatorship. And today, of all days, to do that," Coronel said.  "She issues a proclamation in the same way that Marcos issued a proclamation. It's read out on television in the same way Marcos's was read out. There are just too many parallels. She's not popular to begin with."

Mrs. Arroyo, the daughter of the popular late president Diosdado Macapagal, won a landslide¹⁶ victory in 1998 to become vice¹⁷ president.

Mrs. Arroyo's problems began as soon as she became president in 2000, when supporters of the ousted Joseph Estrada stormed the presidential palace demanding she resign.

Mrs. Arroyo survived but then had to put down a mutiny by around 300 soldiers who seized a Manila hotel in 2003 in an attempt to topple her.

Mrs. Arroyo's first term was also plagued by allegations of corruption and a failure to ensure economic stability.

"She's basically not a reformer, and, I think, the first year… it was a very lackluster presidency marred¹⁸ by the same charges of corruption and patronage¹⁹ that hounded Estrada…. What made it worse was the allegations of cheating in the 2004 elections," Coronel said.

Elected to office in 2004 after finishing Estrada's term, Mrs. Arroyo faced calls of cheating almost immediately. Her popularity plummeted²⁰.

Then, a year later, a recording²¹ surfaced of a phone call she had allegedly made to an election commissioner²² during the presidential polls. Mrs. Arroyo admitted calling the official, but denied attempting to influence the vote.

The allegations led to a failed impeachment attempt in September by her opponents in the lower house of Congress.

Sheila Coronel says although Mrs. Arroyo is only barely holding on to power, it is unlikely she will resign willingly.

"She feels very besieged²³; she's always been a very insecure president," Coronel said. "She knows that she's not popular; she knows that the military is very restive²⁴, she's used every means to hang on to power and she will continue to do that. She's very determined²⁵ to survive. She fears that if she shows any sign of weakness she's going to lose hold - her hold on power is very tenuous²⁶ at this point."

Mrs. Arroyo was quoted Friday as saying, "As commander in chief, I control the situation." But many analysts²⁷ agree Mrs. Arroyo's decision to impose a state of emergency may backfire, costing her the presidency she has so staunchly defended.

1 arroyo   

n.干涸的河床，小河

参考例句：

• She continued along the path until she came to the arroyo.她沿着小路一直走到小河边。
• They had a picnic by the arroyo.他们在干枯的河床边野餐过。

2 ousted   

驱逐( oust的过去式和过去分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• He was ousted as chairman. 他的主席职务被革除了。
• He may be ousted by a military takeover. 他可能在一场军事接管中被赶下台。

3 predecessor   

n.前辈，前任

参考例句：

• It will share the fate of its predecessor.它将遭受与前者同样的命运。
• The new ambassador is more mature than his predecessor.新大使比他的前任更成熟一些。

4 vowing   

起誓，发誓（vow的现在分词形式）

参考例句：

• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild its collapsed bridge. 布什总统承诺将帮助明尼阿波利斯重建坍塌的大桥。
• President Bush is vowing to help Minneapolis rebuild this collapse bridge. 布什总统发誓要帮助明尼阿波利斯重建起这座坍塌的桥梁。

5 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。

6 graft   

n.移植，嫁接，艰苦工作，贪污；v.移植，嫁接

参考例句：

• I am having a skin graft on my arm soon.我马上就要接受手臂的皮肤移植手术。
• The minister became rich through graft.这位部长透过贪污受贿致富。

7 impeachment   

n.弹劾；控告；怀疑

参考例句：

• Impeachment is considered a drastic measure in the United States.在美国，弹劾被视为一种非常激烈的措施。
• The verdict resulting from his impeachment destroyed his political career.他遭弹劾后得到的判决毁了他的政治生涯。

8 rogue   

n.流氓；v.游手好闲

参考例句：

• The little rogue had his grandpa's glasses on.这淘气鬼带上了他祖父的眼镜。
• They defined him as a rogue.他们确定他为骗子。

9 ironic   

adj.讽刺的，有讽刺意味的，出乎意料的

参考例句：

• That is a summary and ironic end.那是一个具有概括性和讽刺意味的结局。
• People used to call me Mr Popularity at high school,but they were being ironic.人们中学时常把我称作“万人迷先生”，但他们是在挖苦我。

10 conspired   

密谋( conspire的过去式和过去分词 )； 搞阴谋； （事件等）巧合； 共同导致

参考例句：

• They conspired to bring about the meeting of the two people. 他们共同促成了两人的会面。
• Bad weather and car trouble conspired to ruin our vacation. 恶劣的气候连同汽车故障断送了我们的假日。

11 economist   

n.经济学家，经济专家，节俭的人

参考例句：

• He cast a professional economist's eyes on the problem.他以经济学行家的眼光审视这个问题。
• He's an economist who thinks he knows all the answers.他是个经济学家，自以为什么都懂。

12 vowed   

起誓，发誓（vow的过去式与过去分词形式）

参考例句：

• He vowed quite solemnly that he would carry out his promise. 他非常庄严地发誓要实现他的诺言。
• I vowed to do more of the cooking myself. 我发誓自己要多动手做饭。

13 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。

14 smacks   

掌掴（声）( smack的名词复数 )； 海洛因； （打的）一拳； 打巴掌

参考例句：

• His politeness smacks of condescension. 他的客气带有屈尊俯就的意味。
• It was a fishing town, and the sea was dotted with smacks. 这是个渔业城镇，海面上可看到渔帆点点。

15 martial   

adj.战争的，军事的，尚武的，威武的

参考例句：

• The sound of martial music is always inspiring.军乐声总是鼓舞人心的。
• The officer was convicted of desertion at a court martial.这名军官在军事法庭上被判犯了擅离职守罪。

16 landslide   

n.(竞选中)压倒多数的选票；一面倒的胜利

参考例句：

• Our candidate is predicated to win by a landslide.我们的候选人被预言将以绝对优势取胜。
• An electoral landslide put the Labour Party into power in 1945.1945年工党以压倒多数的胜利当选执政。

17 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。

18 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。

19 patronage   

n.赞助，支援，援助；光顾，捧场

参考例句：

• Though it was not yet noon,there was considerable patronage.虽然时间未到中午，店中已有许多顾客惠顾。
• I am sorry to say that my patronage ends with this.很抱歉，我的赞助只能到此为止。

20 plummeted   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
• A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 recording   

n.录音，记录

参考例句：

• How long will the recording of the song take?录下这首歌得花多少时间？
• I want to play you a recording of the rehearsal.我想给你放一下彩排的录像。

22 commissioner   

n.（政府厅、局、处等部门）专员，长官，委员

参考例句：

• The commissioner has issued a warrant for her arrest.专员发出了对她的逮捕令。
• He was tapped for police commissioner.他被任命为警务处长。

23 besieged   

包围，围困，围攻( besiege的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Paris was besieged for four months and forced to surrender. 巴黎被围困了四个月后被迫投降。
• The community besieged the newspaper with letters about its recent editorial. 公众纷纷来信对报社新近发表的社论提出诘问，弄得报社应接不暇。

24 restive   

adj.不安宁的，不安静的

参考例句：

• The government has done nothing to ease restrictions and manufacturers are growing restive.政府未采取任何措施放松出口限制,因此国内制造商变得焦虑不安。
• The audience grew restive.观众变得不耐烦了。

25 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

26 tenuous   

adj.细薄的，稀薄的，空洞的

参考例句：

• He has a rather tenuous grasp of reality.他对现实认识很肤浅。
• The air ten miles above the earth is very tenuous.距离地面十公里的空气十分稀薄。

27 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。