VOA标准英语2008年-Kgalema Motlanthe Sworn In as South Africa's Pr

South Africa's parliament has elected African National Congress deputy president Kgalema Motlanthe as the third post-apartheid president of the country. VOA's Delia Robertson reports from our Johannesburg bureau, the new president made it clear he did not intend to deviate¹ from the former president's policies.

Despite the ANC ousting² former President Thabo Mbeki because, in the words of a senior party official, "We have lost confidence in him", Mr. Motlanthe served notice on the country he intended to continue in the footsteps of his predecessor³.

"The policies of this government are clear," he said. "Mine is not the desire to deviate from what is working. It is not for me to reinvent policy. Nor do I intend to reshape either Cabinet or the public service. We will not allow that the work of government be interrupted."

Earlier in the day Chief Justice Pius Langa presided over the election of the new president, who got 269 votes, 28 less than the number of ANC members of parliament. Justice Langa's announcement of the winner was brief.

"I accordingly declare the honorable Kgalema Petros Motlanthe duly elected president of the Republic of South Africa," he said.
　
Kgalema Motlanthe takes the oath of office at Tuynhuis in Cape⁴ Town, 25 Sep 2008

Later Mr. Motlanthe took the oath of office at his official residence, Tuynhuis.

"I, Kgalema Petros Motlanthe, swear that I will be faithful to the Republic of South Africa, and will obey, observe, uphold and maintain the constitution, and all other law[s] of the Republic, and I solemnly and sincerely promise that I will always promote all that will advance the Republic, and oppose all that may harm it," he said.

President Motlanthe is a somewhat opaque⁵ figure to South Africans. A poll was published early in the day in which respondents were asked to indicate if they supported his pending⁶ election as president, and what they knew about him. Overall he received a score of just more than four out of 10. Ironically even ANC supporters scored him less than five with most saying they did not know enough to have an opinion.

It was just Thursday that South Africans learned for the first time that Mr. Motlanthe was born on July 19, 1949 in Alexandra township, now a suburb of Johannesburg. It is believed that he is married with three children. A resume released by the ANC did not mention his educational qualifications.

In 1976 he was detained without trial for 10 months and the following year sentenced to 10 years in jail for offenses⁷ against the apartheid state.

On his release in 1987, Mr. Motlanthe joined the labor⁸ movement and in 1997 was elected secretary general of the ANC, a post he held until he was elected deputy president of the party in December last year.

Before he addressed the house, President Motlanthe had to listen to a string of opposition⁹ party members who, while welcoming his appointment, warned him it is now time to put the country ahead of his divided party. The feisty Independent Democrats¹⁰ leader Patricia de Lille told Mr. Motlanthe his duty is clear.

"During times like these when there is political and economic upheaval¹¹, we urgently need leadership that will give all South Africans hope that the enormous challenges we face like corruption¹², crime, poverty, unemployment and HIV/AIDS will be addressed," said de Lille.

The new president wasted no time in appointing a new cabinet. He replaced ministers who resigned but made only minor¹³ changes in the remaining departments.

The speaker of parliament, Baleka Mbete, will be the new deputy president. He has moved the controversial and unpopular health minister, Manto Tshabalala-Msimang to the presidency¹⁴ and replaced her with the widely respected Barbara Hogan.

 

1 deviate   

v.(from)背离，偏离

参考例句：

• Don't deviate from major issues.不要偏离主要问题。
• I will never deviate from what I believe to be right.我绝不背离我自信正确的道路。

2 ousting   

驱逐( oust的现在分词 )； 革职； 罢黜； 剥夺

参考例句：

• The resulting financial chaos led to the ousting of Bristol-Myers' s boss. 随后引发的财政混乱导致了百时美施贵宝的总裁下台。
• The ousting of the president has drawn widespread criticism across Latin America and the wider world. 洪都拉斯总统被驱逐时间引起拉丁美洲甚至全世界的广泛批评。

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 cape   

n.海角，岬；披肩，短披风

参考例句：

• I long for a trip to the Cape of Good Hope.我渴望到好望角去旅行。
• She was wearing a cape over her dress.她在外套上披着一件披肩。

5 opaque   

adj.不透光的；不反光的，不传导的；晦涩的

参考例句：

• The windows are of opaque glass.这些窗户装着不透明玻璃。
• Their intentions remained opaque.他们的意图仍然令人费解。

6 pending   

prep.直到，等待…期间；adj.待定的；迫近的

参考例句：

• The lawsuit is still pending in the state court.这案子仍在州法庭等待定夺。
• He knew my examination was pending.他知道我就要考试了。

7 offenses   

n.进攻( offense的名词复数 )；（球队的）前锋；进攻方法；攻势

参考例句：

• It's wrong of you to take the child to task for such trifling offenses. 因这类小毛病责备那孩子是你的不对。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Thus, Congress cannot remove an executive official except for impeachable offenses. 因此，除非有可弹劾的行为，否则国会不能罢免行政官员。 来自英汉非文学 - 行政法

8 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

9 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。

10 democrats   

n.民主主义者，民主人士( democrat的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The Democrats held a pep rally on Capitol Hill yesterday. 民主党昨天在国会山召开了竞选誓师大会。
• The democrats organize a filibuster in the senate. 民主党党员组织了阻挠议事。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 upheaval   

n.胀起，(地壳)的隆起；剧变，动乱

参考例句：

• It was faced with the greatest social upheaval since World War Ⅱ.它面临第二次世界大战以来最大的社会动乱。
• The country has been thrown into an upheaval.这个国家已经陷入动乱之中。

12 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。

13 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

14 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。