The House leadership was forced Tuesday to adjourn the session and reset its opening for December 7 as it anticipated the failure of the chamber to get a quorum since most lawmakers were in their respective districts, beating the deadline for the filing of certificates of candidacy.

House members were supposed to be back last Tuesday, but since most of them were not present when the session opened at 4 p.m., the leadership immediately adjourned it.

"We won't get a quorum anyway because everyone is in his district now to file and put up their team candidates," House Speaker Prospero Nograles said.

He noted that the Senate is not affected by their adjournment, and could go on with the session.

Under House Rules, he said, the chamber could delay the start of session provided that such delay does not last more than three days.

House plenary officials said that though the start of the session is reset, House committees could still hold hearings.

The session will run from December 7 to 18. Then congressmen will go on a month-long break. Session will resume anew on January 19, 2010 up to February 5.

There will be no session during the three-month campaign from February 6 to May 30. Congress will convene anew on May 31 and the session will proceed until June 4.

Meanwhile, the Senate formally started last Tuesday the deliberation on the proposed 2010 P1.541-trillion national budget with Senator Edgardo J. Angara, chairman of the Senate finance committee, delivering his sponsorship speech in Tuesday night's regular session.

Before his speech, Angara told Senate reporters that he is seeking a re-alignment of P25 billion out of the proposed P340 billion set aside for debt service to infrastructure after three typhoons hit the country in the past two years.

The P25 billion has been cut from the debt service appropriation by the HOuse of Representatives and re-aligned them to the Department of Public Works and Highways (DPWH)., Department of Education (DepEd), and the Department of Agriculture (DA), Angara said in reply to a query by Sen. Pilar Juliana "Pia" S. Cayetano.

The Senate finance committee, according to Angara, has carefully designed "the architecture of our nation, we are pursuing a green and sustainable growth (and) we can do this by improving our public services, capitlaizing on our rich renewable energy resources, our human resources, and creating green jobs and income opportunities that would provide a better quality of life for Filipinos."

Angara explained that the Congress could not simply turn its back on the payment of its foreign and domestic debts because to do so would result in the government incurring a global cross default of its debtors who could call on the Philippines to pay its debts. (With a report by Mario B. Casayuran)