TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — National Taiwan University (NTU) President Kuan Chung-ming (管中閔) said Tuesday (July 12) the school will conduct a thorough probe into the plagiarism allegations against former Hsinchu City Mayor Lin Chih-chien (林智堅).

After Lin resigned his position to run for mayor of Taoyuan City in the Nov. 26 elections, accusations surfaced that he plagiarized text and data for two theses, including a master’s thesis written for NTU’s Graduate Institute of National Development. The Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) member has denied the allegations, saying he would sue his Kuomintang (KMT) accusers for slander.

NTU’s reputation as Taiwan’s top-notch college had been damaged, Kuan said in an interview with UDN, adding that academic integrity was a basic requirement for academic research. NTU would stick by this essential principle and face the issue with clarity, he said.

Once the investigation into the alleged plagiarism is completed, NTU will publicize the results, Kuan promised. The university earlier said it wanted to wrap up its probe within two months. The affair might interfere with the selection process for Kuan’s successor, as nine professors are vying for the top job at NTU, UDN reported.