Alliance convenor Joseph Cheng Yu-shek took credit for others' work, claims his ex-colleague
Professor Joseph Cheng accused of falsely listing himself as lead author in academic publications
City University is looking into allegations that pro-democracy scholar Professor Joseph Cheng Yu-shek took the credit for others' work in articles published in academic journals more than a decade ago.
This follows a complaint from a former research assistant of Cheng, who is chair professor of political science at the university and convenor of the Alliance for True Democracy.
Cheng Man-lung, who worked for Professor Cheng between September 2002 and January 2003, alleges that his former boss took lead-author credit on three articles published in 2003 and 2004 when it should have been given to his collaborators.
One of the co-authors told the South China Morning Post that the case was too long ago to be remembered. The others could not be reached for comment.
Cheng Man-lung insisted his complaint was not politically motivated, although he conceded he had a personal dispute with the professor in 2002.
"I understand the timing of my complaint is sensitive. But I don't care about politics," said Cheng, now a research assistant to University of Hong Kong law professor Albert Chen Hung-yee.