A quorum is reached when at least 39 out of 76 parliamentarians attend the session. However, 40 MPs submitted a petition in November to not attend plenary sessions until the Parliament Speaker resigns from his position in November. Continuing on to the next stage of protest, MP Bold Luvsanvandan, Batzandan Jalbasuren, Oyun-Erdene Luvsannamsrai and Ayursaikhan Tumurbaatar staged a sit-in to demand self-resignation of Parliament Speaker Enkhbold Miyegombo on December 6. Overall, the Parliament postponed seven sessions last year. Before the Parliament session got dismissed yesterday, Parliament Speaker remarked, “Self-resignation demand has been submitted to the Standing Committee on State Structure; however, the head of the committee Lundeejantsan Danzan informed that the committee is unable to settle the matter as a Speaker can only be ousted in five instances, which were not met so the demand was rejected.”

Parliament currently has several items on the order paper. These include the appointment of the next Minister of Food, Agriculture and Light Industry, as well as the Minerals Law, which is expected to extend 2.5 percent gold royalties for five years. Furthermore, amendments to the Law on Public Service took effect starting from January 1, 2019. This also requires several Parliamentary resolutions on several items to be effective. Amendments included “progressive advancement” for public servants. For instance, positions for a head of department will require 8-year working experience in the public sector.

As for yesterday, Togtokhsuren Dulamdorj, Chairman of the MPP caucus, requested postponement of Parliament session on the basis that MPP caucus need to convene beforehand.