Premier Jiang Yi-huah (江宜樺) yesterday approved the resignation of a Cabinet minister amid allegations that the departing official had an extramarital affair.
The decision was made after a meeting between Jiang and Minister without Portfolio Chen Shi-shuenn (陳希舜) yesterday, Executive Yuan spokesperson Sun Lih-chyun (孫立群) said yesterday evening.
The resignation came after a report in the latest edition of the weekly Next Magazine on Wednesday that said the married Chen, 64, had made seven visits to the residence of Regina Wang (王韋堯), 44, director of National Taiwan University of Science and Technology’s (NTUST) Department of Industrial and Commercial Design, between April 9 and Friday last week.
Each visit began with Wang picking Chen up in her car outside the university in Taipei at about 8pm before heading to her home, where Chen would stay for about three hours, before leaving by himself in a taxi, according to the report.
Chen issued a statement late on Wednesday denying allegations of an affair with Wang, saying they met to discuss business, but adding that they should not have chosen to meet at Wang’s residence.
Chen reportedly met Wang about four years ago, when he was president of the university. As president, Chen signed a collaboration deal with Yulon Nissan Co on design innovation and resource sharing and also received largest single donation ever made to a tertiary vocational training institution in the nation — a pledge of NT$200 million (US$6.08 million) — from Zhuang Yong-shun (莊永順) of Aaeon Technology Co.
Sources have questioned whether Wang’s rapid promotion to the top of her department was linked to her alleged relationship with Chen.
She was an assistant professor during her first six years of teaching at the university before quickly rising through the ranks to become associate professor and then professor.
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