Sabio to face probe

11/17/2009

Chairman Camilo Sabio of the Presidential Commission on Good Government (PCGG) yesterday admitted he had in his retinue 35 consultants and posted in the PCGG some of his relatives that included his son and son-in-law, but justified their postings within the context of the agency’s mandate to recover ill-gotten wealth.

At a news conference, Sabio also welcomed the investigation the Department of Justice (DoJ) planned to conduct into his alleged misuse of the agency’s $5-million foreign litigation fund in his foreign trips.

“It is ridiculous to accuse me of abusing my authority. I welcome the investigation which the DoJ intends to make as regard to the allegations against me. I cannot continue in my job, if I lose my credibility so I welcome any probe,” Sabio told newsmen.

Sabio said the “critical nature” of PCGG’s job left him with no other recourse but to hire consultants. “The reason we have 35 consultants is because of our mandate to recover the ill-gotten wealth. We have to hire lawyers which helped us with technical, legal and administrative aspects and we cannot afford to pay high-priced lawyers that our adversaries have, so we need to hire them, even those who are already retired,” he said.

PCGG Commissioner for Litigation, Jaime Bautista, told newsmen the agency was handling 58 cases before various courts here and abroad, another 100 cases before the Supreme Court (SC) and 100 behest loan cases. Another 40 cases are also filed against the PCGG, he added.

As to his relatives’ posting at the PCGG, Sabio that several of them were indeed connected with the commission, citing the confidential nature of their jobs. “These are confidential positions. It’s not nepotism. So it is very ridiculous to accuse me of abuse of authority,” he stressed.

As to his wife Ma. Marlene who accompanied him on his foreign travels, Sabio said he paid for all her expenses out of his pocket. “With respect to my wife traveling with me, yes she is always with me when I’m traveling abroad as she is both my nurse and assistant considering that I am already 73 years old,” he further explained.

In a confidential letter to Devanadera dated Oct. 28, PCGG employees also accused Sabio and Bautista of misusing PCGG’s foreign litigation fund set up in 2004 by then chair Haydee Yorac to pay for the legal fees of foreign lawyers retained to represent the government in foreign ill-gotten wealth cases.

The employees claimed that on one trip alone, Sabio had an allocation of $120,000 for himself, a claim that Sabio branded as “false, absurd and ridiculous” the allegations raised by what he said the “phantom employees” that he received a $120, 000 allocation in one of his foreign travels.

Also during the press conference, PCGG officials distributed copies of a resolution adoped by PCGG employees who threw their support behind Sabio.

Signed by 151 PCGG rank and file employees, the resolution said they believed in Sabio’s ability “to conduct his job and promote the interest of the Commission and the government as well as the employees and officials of the Commission.” They also assailed those who sent the letter to the DoJ.

“We vehemently deny that the letter filed before the Office of the Honorable Secretary of the Department of Justice, Agnes Devanadera came from the officials and employees of the Commission. We have not asked the Honorable DoJ Secretary to investigate Chairman Sabio for alleged nepotism, abuse of authority and other irregularities, since there is none,” they said.

Critics said the PCGG’s record in running after the ill-gotten wealth was spotty at best but the PCGG said it had recovered since 1986 about P82 billion in cash and assets of the late strongman, his families and cronies. Jason Faustino

Back to top

For comments about this website:Webmaster@tribune.net.ph
The Daily Tribune © 2006