Ex-DOF chief: Make P200 largest bill to curb corruption

Demonetizing P1,000 and P500 bills will make it harder for corrupt officials to conceal and transport illicit funds former SEC backs lifting of bank secrecy law. Story on B1 practical finance chief Cesar Purisima said yesterday.

- MARCO LUIS BEECH

Removing the value of the banknotes is "not a silver bullet," but it would strengthen transparency by raising logistical barriers, he maintained.

"Imagine if the largest bills in circulation were only P200. That same P1 billion would have needed 100 suitcases, a convoy of vehicles and a warehouse just to store the cash. The sheer im-ity would make this kind of corruption much harder to hide," Purisima argued.

About seven vans delivered P1 billion in cash to a congressman, sacked public works engineer Brice Hernandez earlier told the Senate Blue Ribbon committee.

The panel is probing anomalous flood control projects nationwide.

State officials, contractors and engineers have been implicated in ghost and substandard infrastructure projects, as well as anomalous budget insertions.

Last week, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas tightened regulations on large cash dealings by limiting daily withdrawals and similar payouts to P500,000, unless backed by enhanced due diligence measures.