The meeting of the DP group in Parliament on Monday discussed eight major issues, including restoration of Child Money payment and the letter of demand submitted to the Parliament Speaker by civil movements. Head of the group Ch.Saikhanbileg told media that a working group was established to review the Child Money issue. About the demands from those who organized the protest, the group felt they deserved serious consideration and hoped the Speaker’s Council and the heads of Standing Committees would respond to the civil movements in due course.

Asked why the DP MPs were putting the onus of responding on the Speaker’s Council, Saikhanbileg said, “The protestors submitted their demand to the Speaker as representing Parliament. Our group felt Parliament should respond as an institution, and party groups or political parties had no role at the moment. If the Speaker sets up a working group on the matter, it will also certainly include group leaders and Standing Committee heads.”

The members of the group felt that the recent trend to appoint directors of executing agencies for six-year terms, a period longer than what MPs and the President serve, violates the Constitution which makes special mention of only the Judge General of the Supreme Court and the Prosecutor General to hold office for that long. The MPs felt such appointments make officials more powerful than the people’s elected representatives, and wanted the four-year term to be followed. They also suggested that these appointments should be made two years before a parliament election, to make them independent of election results. A working group was established to study the matter.

Another working group was formed to discuss draft amendments to the law on police and intelligence organizations.