NTU President Controversy Continues to Simmer|管校外兼職可追溯 台大認定:通例

The center of the controvers lies in the fact that the Taiwan University presidential candidate Kuan Chung-ming is also serving on the board of Taiwan Mobile. Education Minister Wu Maw-kuen says NTU amended its laws in 2016 to stipulate that obtaining approval from the school authority after starting part-time work is not allowed. However, the university seems to have a different opinion.


Education Minister Wu Maw-kuen was speaking to the media before a legislative interpellation when a dozen or so Kuomintang legislators appeared on the scene, carrying signs and protesting. The lawmakers boycotted the interpellation, preventing Wu from speaking to the legislature. However, Wu was able to speak with the media about former National Taiwan University presidential candidate Kuan Chung-ming's concurrent posts. He said the university amended its laws in 2016 to say that obtaining approval from the school authority after starting part-time work is not allowed.

The law is very clear. In January 2016, National Taiwan University passed amendments to its laws. They very clearly stated that ex post facto approvals are not allowed.

NTU's laws before they were amended in 2016 stipulate that approval is granted in principle after the president is ratified. However, the amended laws require industry-academia agreements to be signed first before notices are sent to for-profit enterprises and professors. The university says time is needed for the application process and therefore its general rule is that it takes effect from the starting date of a board member position.

We probably will discuss issues related to the autonomy of universities, as well as the school's future response to this matter. There may be appeals of the decision (to reject) by university presidents and officials. However, there is a precondition, which is to look at the content of real documents sent by the Ministry of Education.

NTU has decided to hold an ad hoc school affairs meeting on May 12 to discuss the Ministry of Education's rejection of Kuan's selection and university autonomy. It has not yet said whether or not it will reconvene its selection committee.