National Taiwan University Hospital (NTUH) on Wednesday scoffed at the speculation that Lien Sheng-wen, the son of a former vice-president, had orchestrated his own shooting on election eve last Friday, saying the patient would not have had the 'courage' to arrange for someone to shoot him in the head. Lien, 40, also known as Sean Lien, was shot in the face while he was stumping for a Kuomintang Xinbei council candidate last Friday night at a campaign rally in suburban Taipei. The bullet entered Lien's left cheek and exited below his right temple, according to police reports. After a four-hour operation at NTUH, Lien is now able to talk, eat, and smile, the hospital said. Lien's rapid recovery and the lack of pictures of his injury have prompted some people, in particular a few Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) lawmakers, to speculate on the authenticity of the shooting. Some have said that Lien orchestrated the entire incident to bolster the KMT's chances in the municipality elections. Various political commentators have argued that the incident gave the KMT a much needed last-minute push to edge ahead in an election that they said was deadlocked. However, such notions were strongly refuted by NTUH trauma specialist Ko Wen-je, the head physician who treated Lien in the first 30 minutes after he was rushed to the hospital. 'I saw the injury with my own eyes and treated him personally. There is nothing fake about it, ' Ko said. ' Lien would not have had the courage to arrange for a gunman to shoot him in the head. That would have been too dangerous.' The doctor said that as a staunch DPP supporter he is the most convincing witness to vouch for Lien. Lien's wound is real and was definitely caused by a bullet that went through his face, Ko said, lamenting the lack of trust between rival parties in Taiwan. The doctor attributed Lien's speedy recovery to the hospital's medical expertise as well as the patient's 'good luck.' Had the bullet struck one centimeter in another direction, the patient could have lost his sight, Ko said. According to the NTUH press release, Lien remains under hospital watch and is in stable condition. Amid calls by the public to disclose Lien's medical records, the hospital pointed out that under the Medical Care Act health institutions are not permitted to release patient records without the consent of the patient. 'The hospital has no authority to publicize any medical records, x-ray pictures or any related information regarding Lien's condition,' NTUH said. The law also requires hospitals to forward all relevant information and documents to the judiciary upon request, as in this case, NTUH added. The police reported that a man was fatally shot in the same incident. It is still unclear whether he was killed by the same bullet that struck Lien. A suspect was immediately arrested on the scene of the incident and is still in detention. 