Manila: The Philippine Postal Corporation (PHLpost) will on Thursday release a limited edition of four stamps to commemorate the visit of Pope Francis in the Philippines from January 15 to 19, a senior official said, adding that mailboxes for free letters to the Pontiff will also be launched nationwide.
PHLpost will release 120,000 copies of the four commemorative stamps that were designed by Salvadore Banares Jr, Don Michael Bryan Bunag, Marc Leo Maac, and Dave Arjay Tan who won a design contest launched last October 11, Postmaster-General Josie dela Cruz said.
A stamp costs P10,00 (Dh0.83), or P40.00 (Dh3.30) for a block of four stamps, said de la Cruz, adding that members of PHLpost’s Stamp Committee have met several times to deliberate on the prices of the commemorative stamps.
Explaining why the special stamps were printed, de la Cruz said, “We would like to express our sincerest appreciation for His Holiness’ visit to our country, primarily to comfort the Filipino victims of the earthquake and Typhoon Haiyan that hit central Philippines in 2013.”
“We are deeply moved by his compassion to the Filipino people,” said dela Cruz.
PHLpost will also release specially designed envelope for the commemorative stamps, including a bigger-sized special envelope with metallic foil which will be sold only during the stamp’s launching, said dela Cruz.
Cruz. PHLpost printed special stamps with the image of Pope Francis on the first anniversary of his election in April 2014. It was a joint project of PHLpost and the Vatican Post, said dela Cruz, adding that her office is still receiving bookings for the 2014 stamps from Italy.
PHLpost also released special stamps for the visits of Pope Paul VI in 1970, Pope John Paul II in 1981 and 1995; the death of Pope John Paul II in 2005, and canonisation of Pope John XXIII in 2013.
“PHLpost’s projects are good for stamp collectors,” Rey Ong, president of the Philippine Philatelic Federations, said.
Meanwhile, PHLpost also installed mail boxes through which young people can send their letter to Pope Francis for free, dela Cruz said, adding the mailboxes were installed at key places nationwide and will be opened during the release of the commemorative stamps.
PHLpost has been coordinating with the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of the Philippines (CBCP) for the presentation of the commemorative stamps and letters to Pope Francis, said dela Cruz. She did not give details.
