Taiwan’s leading epidemiologist Chen Chien-jen is thought to be the opposition Democratic Progressive Party’s (DPP) vice presidential candidate.
The DPP is expected to make a formal announcement next week. However, the head of DPP presidential candidate Tsai Ing-wen’s campaign office confirmed the news on Saturday.
According to Taiwanese media reports, Chen Chien-jen has been hand-picked by Tsai, partly because of his respected academic career and partly because he poses no threat to aspiring DPP politicians. That’s because he has little connection with political circles and is unlikely to become Tsai’s successor.
Chen Chien-jen was appointed health minister in 2003. He played a crucial role in helping contain the outbreak of SARS or severe acute respiratory syndrome.
Chen’s research on chronic arsenic poisoning has won global recognition, and his study of chronic hepatitis B has prompted the government to introduce hepatitis B vaccines nationwide.
Chen Chien-jen received his doctor of science (Sc.D.) in epidemiology and human genetics from Johns Hopkins University. He is currently the vice president of Academia Sinica, Taiwan’s highest research body.