BSP studies new P500 bill design with Cory, Ninoy

MANILA - The Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) on Monday said they are now studying the possible design of a new P500 bill that would feature the late former president Corazon Aquino alongside her husband, the late former senator Benigno "Ninoy" Aquino Jr.

The BSP Numismatic and Concept Committee said Mrs. Aquino is already qualified to have her image put in a bill or coin. (Read: BSP mulling to put Cory on P500 bill)

For a person to have his or her image printed on a bill, the person should already be dead, has made a significant contribution to the country, and should embody something unique about the Filipino people.

"To recognize the contributions of President Aquino to the cause of democracy, to the cause of national unity, how do we do that? We intend to put her portrait in the P500 notes," BSP Deputy Governor Diwa Gunigundo said.

The BSP expects to have the lay-out ready by October, and once approved, the first batch of bills with Cory and Ninoy's images will be out early 2010.

Along with this possible new design, the BSP is preparing to include new technologies on the current bills to heighten security and to prevent fraud.

This idea first came out after a possible design of a new P500 bill, made by 22-year-old Reno Naval, came out on the internet.

"I posted [the design] as my first post on my website (www.peaceloveandrevolution.com). And then surprisingly, there were a lot of people who saw it, and when the website was [published] on [the newspapers], it spread out like wildfire," Naval said about the spread of his design on the internet.

"Kung ano man ang ma-finalize na konsepto, as long as magkasama sila, masaya silang dalawa (sa disenyo), for sure buong buhay ng mga Pilipino maaalala natin 'tong dalawang bayani na ito," he said. With a report from Cecille Lardizabal