Chen Sui Bian is the President of Taiwan.
Chen, whose Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) has traditionally been supportive of Taiwan independence, took office in 2000 ending more than fifty years of Kuomintang rule in Taiwan.
In May 2006, his approval rating, as determined by the TSU, fell to a dismal 5.8%, after a series of scandals were discovered. Additional sources showed his approval rating at around 20%. Support from his own party has also dropped with a few members calling for his sacking as he had a bad influence on his party and may cause them to lose the 2008 election.
On May 24, 2006, his son-in-law, Chao Chien-ming, was taken into custody by the Taipei police on charges of insider stock trading and embezzlement. This was yet another setback for the Chen Shui Bian administration. In related charges, there were also accusations that Chen Shui Bian's wife was involved in trading stocks and obtaining Pacific Sogo Department Store's gift certificates illegally in exchange for settling the disputed ownership.
On June 1, 2006, Chen declared that he was handing control of governmental matters to Premier Su Tseng-chang and announced he would not be involved in campaigning. He also stated that he was retaining authority on matters that the Constitution required him to retain authority over, presumably foreign affairs and defense policy, as well as relations with mainland China.
On July 20, 2006, Opposition politicians accused that Chen used a total of NT$10.2 million (US$310,000) worth of "fake invoices" to claim expenses after the National Audit Office found irregularities in Presidential Office accounts. The Taiwan High Court Prosecutors' Office is currently under investigation over this accusation.
