President Aquino will take a “hands-off ” policy in case of any attempt to reopen the case of his father, the late Senator Benigno S. Aquino Jr., who was assassinated on August 21, 1983, Malacañang said Sunday.

Presidential Spokesman Edwin Lacierda said the President would prefer the concerned government agency to deal with any matter related to the murder of his father to avoid speculations he is influencing the results of the case.

“That’s going to be a sensitive issue.

I’m sure he will take a hands-off approach there because he doesn’t want to be accused of using his position to do anything in his favor. That’s very clear,” he said over state-run Radyo ng Bayan.

“If there is any new evidence that may shed light on the assassination of his father, it would be prudent to give them to the appropriate agency or body and not the President,” he said. Any additional information or evidence could be given to the appropriate government agencies, such as the Department of Justice, he added.

Aquino, a known opposition leader during the Marcos regime, was shot to death on August 21, 1983, moments after he arrived from exile in the United States. His death sparked a wave of protests, culminating in the first Edsa people power revolution that ousted the Marcos administration.

In 1987, several soldiers were convicted for the assassination of Aquino in 1983 even as speculations persist that the mastermind remains at large.

Last year, then President Arroyo commuted the sentences of the convicts, triggering protests from the Aquino family.