MANILA, Philippines?Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) Chair Camilo Sabio yesterday defended himself against allegations of nepotism, saying that hiring family members as assistants was well within his mandate.

He also denied accusations made by a group of employees that he abused his authority by going on expensive trips abroad and hiring ?too many? consultants for the PCGG.

At an impromptu press conference, Sabio answered the allegations the employees aired against him in an Oct. 28 letter to Justice Secretary Agnes Devanadera. The employees asked Devanadera to investigate the PCGG chair.

Sabio said he welcomed an investigation by the Department of Justice.

He said there was nothing inappropriate in employing family members as part of his ?confidential? staff. Many government officials do this because they say they need someone around them they can trust.

Employed at the PCGG are Sabio?s son, Jose Gerardo Sabio, who serves as his executive assistant; son-in-law Alberto Feria, a special assistant; nephew Patricio Ledonio, a clerk; brother-in-law Gerardo Ledonio, another special assistant; and another family member Smile Catabas, also a clerk.

Sabio said they received salaries ranging from P9,000 to P25,000 a month and were serving ?co-terminus? with him, meaning they have to leave office when Sabio does.

?Hiring special assistants is addressed to my discretion, as long as they are doing their jobs,? Sabio told reporters.

He also denied reports his office once spent $120,000 on one foreign trip alone, saying he had already explained his travels to former Justice Secretary Raul Gonzalez.

Sabio provided reporters with copies of a ?confidential? letter he had written to Gonzalez in December 2008 explaining his foreign trips.

He admitted, however, that it was true his wife always travelled with him as his ?nurse and assistant.?

He also justified the hiring of outside lawyers by the PCGG, saying the office needed ?brilliant and seasoned? legal representation.

He said the Office of the Solicitor General, the government?s prosecutory arm, had a considerable caseload and so hiring private consultants was necessary.

Sabio cited an executive order designating the PCGG as a ?critical agency? and giving it the power to hire its own staff and determine their salaries.