VOA慢速英语2015--尼日利亚人庆祝历史性选举

AS IT IS 2015-05-21 Nigerians 'Trek¹' to Celebrate Historic Election 尼日利亚人庆祝历史性选举

Nigerians elected former military ruler Muhammadu Buhari as their president last month. The elections are considered historic. It was the first time a Nigerian president has failed to win re-election since the country returned to democratic rule in 1999.

Mr. Buhari defeated current president Goodluck Jonathan. The president-elect will take office later this month.

Some Nigerians are celebrating the election results in an unusual way: they have been going for very long walks.

The long walks are known as trekking². Nigerians from all across the country are trekking, and for all kinds of reasons. One man announced plans to walk from the central Nigerian state of Taraba to Bayelsa, the home state of President Jonathan. The trekker³ planned to give Mr. Jonathan an award for leaving office peacefully.

Another man is walking 800 kilometers from the northeastern city of Maidguri to the capital, Abuja, to congratulate Mr. Buhari. There also is a woman walking from the southeastern city of Enugu to Abuja as a show of national unity⁴. Her trek will cover a distance of about 440 kilometers.

Sulaiman Hashimu walked 750 kilometers from Lagos, Nigeria’s biggest city, to Abuja. He says his decision to make the trip resulted from a debate among friends about who loved Mr. Buhari more.

“So when we (were) arguing over election and love of Buhari, this one would say, ‘I love Buhari more than you,’ I will say, ‘I love Buhari more than you.’

He says that argument led the friends to make promises. Some offered to sell their belongings⁵ and give the money to others. Another friend promised to loan his car for free.

Sulaiman Hashimu felt he had little to offer. So he promised to walk to Abuja if Mr. Buhari won. Two years later, he did, and met the president-elect when he arrived in the capital last month.

Few of the trekkers arrive without some present or gifts. Abubakar Dudu Wali walked about 750 kilometers from the northeastern city of Yola to Abuja. He says he became something of a messenger service for the people met along the road.

He says people gave him messages as he trekked⁶ from Yola State. He says he carried about 400 letters that people asked him to give to Mr. Buhari.

Mr. Dudu is now in Abuja, waiting to see the president-elect.

But why walk? Sani Ibrahim Maimasara has an answer. Reporter Chris Stein found him on the road from the northern city of Zaria to Gombe in Nigeria’s northeast. Mr. Mainmasara says he wants to congratulate the governor of Gombe. The governor was the only official loyal to Mr. Jonathan’s party to keep his job in northern Nigeria.

Mr. Maimasara says he knows the governor is a busy man. But he is sure the official will take time to meet a party supporter who walked more than 480 kilometers to see him.

When he spoke⁷ to the reporter, Mr. Maimasara was outside the city of Bauchi, 192 kilometers from his goal.

Words in This Story:

historic – adj. something famous or important

re-election – n. returned to office through a vote

trek – v. to walk; n. a walk

congratulate – v. to praise a person or to express pleasure for success or good luck

promise – n. a spoken or written agreement to do something; v. – to say one will do something

1 trek   

vi.作长途艰辛的旅行；n.长途艰苦的旅行

参考例句：

• We often go pony-trek in the summer.夏季我们经常骑马旅行。
• It took us the whole day to trek across the rocky terrain.我们花了一整天的时间艰难地穿过那片遍布岩石的地带。

2 trekking   

v.艰苦跋涉，徒步旅行( trek的现在分词 )；（尤指在山中）远足，徒步旅行，游山玩水

参考例句：

• She can't come pony trekking after all because she's in a delicate condition. 她结果还是不能坐小马车旅行，因为她已怀孕。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• We spent the summer trekking in the foothills of the Himalayas. 我们整个夏天都在喜马拉雅山的山麓艰难跋涉。 来自互联网

3 trekker   

背包客

参考例句：

4 unity   

n.团结，联合，统一；和睦，协调

参考例句：

• When we speak of unity,we do not mean unprincipled peace.所谓团结，并非一团和气。
• We must strengthen our unity in the face of powerful enemies.大敌当前，我们必须加强团结。

5 belongings   

n.私人物品，私人财物

参考例句：

• I put a few personal belongings in a bag.我把几件私人物品装进包中。
• Your personal belongings are not dutiable.个人物品不用纳税。

6 trekked   

v.艰苦跋涉，徒步旅行( trek的过去式和过去分词 )；（尤指在山中）远足，徒步旅行，游山玩水

参考例句：

• They trekked for three days along the banks of the Zambezi. 他们沿着赞比西河河岸跋涉了三天。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Six-man teams trekked through the woods, respectively for 72 to 96 hours. 6人一组的小分队，经过长途跋涉，穿过了森林，分别用72小时到96小时不等。 来自互联网

7 spoke   

n.（车轮的）辐条；轮辐；破坏某人的计划；阻挠某人的行动 v.讲，谈（speak的过去式）；说；演说；从某种观点来说

参考例句：

• They sourced the spoke nuts from our company.他们的轮辐螺帽是从我们公司获得的。
• The spokes of a wheel are the bars that connect the outer ring to the centre.辐条是轮子上连接外圈与中心的条棒。