Chen, who is being detained at a jail in Tucheng city outside Taipei, is due to appear at a session of the Taipei District Court beginning at 9.30am (Singapore time), the official said on Sunday.

Three other accused - two businessmen and a former science park chief - will also appear for their roles in scandals over an exhibition hall and science park land which have implicated Chen and his family.

The session is part of a three-day preliminary hearing on the case against the former president who was arrested in November on charges of embezzlement and money laundering.

The pro-independence Chen has repeatedly insisted that the charges against him are politically motivated, accusing President Ma Ying-jeou's Beijing-friendly government of leading a witch hunt.

Chen, who left office in May last year after serving a maximum two terms as president, is the island's first leader to be detained on criminal charges.

Chen, who came to power eight years ago pledging to fight corruption, faces life in prison if convicted on all counts of embezzling public funds, taking bribes and money laundering. -- AFP