Singaporean Mandarin Database

This database contains a collection of Mandarin terms which have cultural, historical or sentimental value unique to Singapore. These terms may be used by Singaporeans in the past or at present. Some of the terms are read in print while others are used in our everyday conversations.

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后

hòu

座

zuò

议

yì

员

yuán

Back Bencher

Legal/Politics

法政

Legal / Politics

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Back Bencher

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Legal/Politics

法政

Legal / Politics

释义

名词

不担任公职的普通议员。

DEFINITION

Noun

An ordinary Member of Parliament who does not hold public office and does not serve as a spokesperson on the frontbench in the Opposition.

由来
  • 英文 “back bencher” 的意译。
  • 这个词汇源自英国下议院（House of Commons），因为这些没有公职的议员一般都坐在后排，所以被称为 “后座议员”。基于历史因素，新加坡和大多数英联邦国家（Commonwealth countries）一样延用英国议会制度。
  • 后座议员是俗称名词，并非法律专业名词。在新加坡，“后座议员” 一词通常包括民选议员（Elected Member of Parliament）、非选区议员（Non-constituency Member of Parliament，简称 NCMP）和官委议员（Nominated Member of Parliament，简称 NMP）。民选议员是通过大选由民众选出的议员。
  • 1984 年，当时的李光耀总理提出宪法修订，让大选中得票率最高的落选反对党候选人出任非选区议员。1984 年的大选后，该席位因为那届符合资格的反对党候选人不接受委任而悬空。1988 年选举后，李绍祖医生接受委任成为第一名非选区议员直到 1991 年大选。
  • 为了有更多元和非党派的独立观点，国会在 1989 年修订宪法增设官委议员，经由国会特别遴选委员会（Special Select Committee）向总统提名。总统在 1990 年委任第一批官委议员，任期为两年半。
  • 1987 年，当时的吴作栋副总理提出组建政府国会委员会（Government Parliamentary Committee），让执政党后座议员监督及审查各政府部门，同时也提供多一个收集相关人士的意见和反馈的平台。
  • 后座议员在任期内可继续做自己的生意或工作。
ETYMOLOGY
  • The Mandarin term “后座议员” is a paraphrase of the English term “Back Bencher”.
  • This term originated from the House of Commons in the United Kingdom. As Members of Parliament who do not hold public or government office usually sit in the back row, they came to be known as “Back Benchers”. Due to historical reasons, Singapore and most Commonwealth countries continue to follow the British parliamentary system.
  • In 1987, then Deputy Prime Minister Goh Chok Tong proposed to form a Government Parliamentary Committee to allow Back Benchers of the ruling party to monitor and inspect various government departments, providing an additional platform to collect opinions and feedback from pertinent people.
  • Back Benchers can continue their own businesses or jobs during their term.
例句
人民行动党宣布新一届国会的政府国会委员会名单，12 个委员会中迎来七名首次担任正副主席的后座议员，另有四名新任议员受委副主席。 （《联合早报》，20/8/2020）
SAMPLE SENTENCE
The People’s Action Party announced the list of names for the Government Parliamentary Committee of the new Parliament. The 12 committees admitted seven Back Benchers who would serve as chairmen and vice-chairmen for the first time, and another four new Members of Parliament were appointed as vice-chairmen. (Lianhe Zaobao, 20/8/2020)
参考资料
点击查看后座议员的参考资料
REFERENCES

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