Isko appeals to BSP to reconsider new design of P1,000 bill

Presidential aspirant and Manila City Mayor Isko Moreno on Monday appealed to the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP) to reconsider the recently released new design of the P1,000-denominated banknote.

In an ambush interview with reporters, Moreno said he has reservations on this new design as he prefers to retain the images of Filipino heroes Vicente Lim, Josefa Llanes Escoda, and Jose Abad Santos.

The new design of the P1,000 banknote, which will be for the limited polymer bills to be released in 2022, features the Philippine eagle in front, replacing the heroes.

"I'm trying to call the attention of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to reconsider noong tinanggal nila 'yung mga mukha ng ating heroes sa P1,000 na salapi," Moreno said.

(I'm trying to call the attention of Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas to reconsider its latest P1,000 bill design which replaces the images of Filipino heroes with a face of Philippine eagle.)

"While it is true that eagle should be there also, but siguro naman puwedeng halfway 'yun, puwede naman sa kabila nandoon pa rin 'yung ating mga heroes tapos 'yung ating national treasure, mga mahahalagang bagay o unique sa bansa natin, eh nandoon pa rin katulad ng agila," he added.

(While it is true that the eagle should be there also, maybe this could be done halfway... we can retain the images of our heroes and include the other national treasure and unique features of our country, including the Philippine eagle.)

Moreno, standard bearer of Aksyon Demokratiko, pointed out that the Filipino culture and tradition should always be given importance as this provides distinction from other nations' culture.

He then proposed the creation of a new department, the National History and Culture, which will be mandated to educate the next generations about the uniqueness of Philippine culture and the personalities who have bravely fought for the country to gain its freedom.

"Kaya nga alam mo siguro sa totoo lang, it's high time dahil maraming ahensya ng gobyerno, NHI (National Historical Institute), NCCA (National Commission for Culture and the Arts), and all other historical institute, National Library... alam mo it's high time for us to create National History and Culture, pagsama-samahin itong mga ahensyang ito, maging isang departamento na walang gagawin kung hindi ipaalala sa mga susunod na henerasyon kung sino tayo as Filipino, ano tayo as bansa at sino 'yung mga tao o ninuno natin na nagpursige na makamit natin 'yung kalayaan ng bansa na tinatamasa ngayon ng lahat ng kabataan," Moreno explained.

(You know, it's high time to create a National History and Culture that will include other historical institutes, we will just create one department that will inform the next generation about our culture and who are those ancestors that fought for the country's freedom.)

Moreno said the Philippines’ P1,000 bill is not only the largest denomination in general circulation in the country, but it is also the only banknote in Southeast Asia that shows the country’s notable heroes, along with its natural wonders.

Abad Santos was the fifth chief justice of the Supreme Court of the Philippines and briefly served as the acting president of the Commonwealth of the Philippines and acting commander-in-chief of the Philippine military during World War II.

Lim, on the other hand, was a Filipino brigadier general who commanded the 41st Infantry Division, Philippine Army (USAFFE) during the Battle of Bataan.

Meanwhile, Escoda was the founder of the Girl Scouts of the Philippines. She supplied medicine, food, and clothes to both Filipino war prisoners and American internees in concentration camps during the Japanese occupation.

For his part, senatorial aspirant and human rights lawyer Chel Diokno denounced the BSP’s decision to remove the three Filipino World War 2 heroes in the P1,000 bill, insisting the government should pay homage to the country’s heroes.

“I have nothing against putting the Philippine Eagle in our money, but we should be commemorating our heroes,” Diokno said in a statement. “Isa sa mga layunin kung bakit nilalagay ang mga bayani sa ating salapi ay upang manatiling buhay ang alaala ng kanilang kagitingan.” 

Diokno said that while there’s still time, “it would be best for the BSP to change the design.”

“Sana ginamit na lang ng BSP ang kabilang side ng ating pera para ipasok ang bagong disenyo na kanilang gusto. Naiwasan pa sana ang kontrobersiyang ito,” he stressed.

House Deputy Minority leader and Bayan Muna Representative Carlos Isagani Zarate has called out the BSP for the "glaring errors" in the recently released new design of the P1,000 bill.

BSP Governor Benjamin Diokno said the errors have since been corrected. — RSJ, GMA News