Why we cannot trust Peter Mathieson: his shady track record in Hong Kong

Earlier this year, Peter Mathieson left University of Hong Kong (HKU) in the middle of his term and assumed office in University of Edinburgh as its Principal. As detailed in my <a href="https://medium.com/@julianho/a-compilation-of-the-scandals-of-edinburghs-incoming-principal-mathieson-3eb5ab933c4" rel="noopener">previous article</a>, during his tenure in HKU, Mathieson was embroiled in multiple scandals. Unfortunately for him, Mathieson’s escape from HKU did not keep him from further controversies. Immediately after his arrival in Edinburgh, it was revealed that he was receiving a record-high salary for his position<a href="https://medium.com/@julianho/why-we-cannot-trust-peter-mathieson-his-shady-track-record-in-hong-kong-f83ff120cc60#_ftn1" rel="noopener ugc nofollow">[1]</a>. The conditions Mathieson received was so good that even the cost of relocation of his pets from Hong Kong to Edinburgh was subsidized<a href="https://medium.com/@julianho/why-we-cannot-trust-peter-mathieson-his-shady-track-record-in-hong-kong-f83ff120cc60#_ftn2" rel="noopener ugc nofollow">[2]</a>. Coincidentally, it was also at this time that the academic staff all over UK were organizing a strike over the cut in their pension and some strikers described Mathieson’s seemingly disproportionately high salary as “disgusting”<a href="https://medium.com/@julianho/why-we-cannot-trust-peter-mathieson-his-shady-track-record-in-hong-kong-f83ff120cc60#_ftn3" rel="noopener ugc nofollow">[3]</a>. What was worse was while some university heads spoke against the downgrade in pensions, Mathieson chose to remain silent, despite the fact that over 300 professors petitioned to urge him to join the call. Meanwhile, Edinburgh’s Students’ Association strongly supported the industrial action of the academic staff<a href="https://medium.com/@julianho/why-we-cannot-trust-peter-mathieson-his-shady-track-record-in-hong-kong-f83ff120cc60#_ftn4" rel="noopener ugc nofollow">[4]</a>. <a href="https://medium.com/@julianho/why-we-cannot-trust-peter-mathieson-his-shady-track-record-in-hong-kong-f83ff120cc60">Learn More</a>