MANILA, Philippines?He is not going to rock the boat, that?s for sure.

Newly appointed Acting Justice Secretary Alberto Agra formally assumed the post Tuesday, saying he intended to just continue the work left behind by his predecessor Agnes Devanadera.

?I?ll just be carrying on what Ma?m Agnes has left me,? said Agra to reporters covering the formal turnover ceremony at the Department of Justice (DoJ) Tuesday afternoon.

?I?ll be here for only four months. There will be no overhaul of management except for the filling of vacancies?no big movements. Ayokong mangbulabog (I don?t want to create shock waves),? he said.

Off the top of his head, Agra said that among the more controversial cases he would be overseeing are the syndicated estafa complaints against Legacy Group chair Celso de los Angeles; the multiple-murder cases against the Ampatuan clan tagged in the Maguindanao massacre; and the Dacer-Corbito double murder case involving Sen. Panfilo Lacson.

Agra is concurrently the acting solicitor general. He was initially sworn in as acting justice secretary on Friday after the Supreme Court ruled with finality that Cabinet members and other appointive officials running in the May 10 elections were considered resigned.

Devanadera, who was also Agra?s boss in the Office of the Solicitor General, is running for representative in Quezon province.

Agra said he had to give up his job as head of the Office of the Government Corporate Counsel because he could not juggle three positions at once.

At the DoJ, he said he hoped to reduce the backlog of 8,000-10,000 petitions for review filed by parties seeking to overturn resolutions approved by government prosecutors.

He said he did not intend to review resolutions Devanadera had approved.

As an ex-officio member of the Judicial and Bar Council, he said he would continue to take the position that President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo can appoint the next Chief Justice despite an election ban against midnight appointments.

Agra as the acting solicitor general had taken the same position before the Supreme Court which has been asked to rule whether Ms Arroyo can appoint Chief Justice Reynato Puno?s successor when the latter retires on May 17.