Taipei Times
Date: Feb 02, 2017
By: Jason Pan / Staff reporter

Democratic Progressive Party (DPP) Legislator Kao Jyh-peng’s (高志鵬) proposal to redesign the nation’s currency to replace the images of Republic of China founding father Sun Yat-sen (孫逸仙) and former president Chiang Kai-shek (蔣介石) has sparked a heated public debate.

Kao on Thursday last week wrote on Facebook that while preparing hongbao (紅包, red envelopes) for the Lunar New Year holiday, some of his friends complained that they were tired of “looking at the faces of Sun and Chiang,” which are featured on the NT$100 bill, as well as the NT$50, NT$10, NT$5 and NT$1 coins.

“Banknotes and coins are not only the nation’s legal currency, they also represent our national identity and culture,” Kao wrote, adding that Sun and Chiang are “heroes only to some people.”

Kao said that after the holiday, he would propose legislation for the establishment of a “national currency design committee,” which would be tasked with creating new designs for the currency that are more in line with the nation’s current state of affairs.    [FULL  STORY]