3 New Ministers Appointed

In December, Prime Minister U.Khurelsukh decided to oust Minister of Roads and Transportation Ya.Sodbaatar and Minister of Education, Culture, Science and Sports Ts.Tsogzolmaa from Cabinet as a company under the ownership of Ya.Sodbaatar's wife took out a soft loan of 1.2 billion MNT from the Fund to Develop Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises and Ts.Tsogzolmaa voted for Cabinet's dissolution, but a parliamentary review for the dismissals of the two ministers was postponed for two months as nearly 40 lawmakers boycotted parliamentary sessions.

As Parliament accepted the dismissals of the two ministers on February 2 and appointed Cabinet minister G.Zandanshatar as the speaker, Cabinet had three important vacancies to fill.

Prime Minister U.Khurelsukh said he did not wish to have an empty seat within his Cabinet at the end of the fall session of Parliament.

As the prime minister, U.Khurelsukh nominated lawmaker L.Oyun-Erdene as Cabinet secretariat, Yo.Baatarbileg as minister of education, culture, science and sports, and B.Enkh-Amgalan as minister of roads and transportation on February 2.

After the Mongolian People's Party caucus and relevant standing committees supported the nominees proposed by U.Khurelsukh on the same day, Parliament accepted the appointments of the three candidates.

During Parliament's review of the nominees, lawmaker O.Baasankhuu of the Mongolian People's Revolutionary Party asked the three candidates whether they will reappoint the 77 department heads and government officials who were fired for 'no reason' by the previous ministers. O.Baasankhuu said that the court ordered the reappointment of the department heads.

In response to O.Baasankhuu's question, none of the three candidates gave a clear answer, and they all said that they will review what happened to the 77 government officials after taking office.

As Parliament rushed to appoint the three nominees before Tsagaan Sar, few lawmakers asked the nominees about their action plans.

L.Oyun-Erdene was born in 1980 in Ulaanbaatar, and graduated from Bers Institute as a journalist in 2001, earned master's degrees in education from the Mongolian University of Education in 2008 and in politics from the National University of Mongolia in 2011, and a master's degree in public administration from Harvard Kennedy School in 2015.

He worked as chief of staff to Khentii Province's Berkh City's Mayor Office in 2001, and...