The MPRP senior leadership held a press conference yesterday ahead of the party’s 26th General Assembly to begin on Thursday. Those talking to the media were Prime Minister S.Batbold, who is also chairman of the party; its secretary-general, U.Khurelsukh; the two secretaries, Ts.Sukhbaatar and U.Barsbold; the group leader in Parliament and member of the Representative Managing Council, D.Lundeejantsan; First Deputy Prime Minister M.Enkhbold; and Minister T.Gandhi.
Batbold said the 801 delegates at the conference will represent 150,000 MPRP members belonging to 1,600 primary organizations. Of the delegates, 22.2% are women, 20.8% below the age of 35, 31.1% between 36 and 45, 41.1% between 46 and 60, and 6.9% older than 60. Thus the delegates represent three generations.
He said the MPRP has been in power for 16 of the 20 years since the democratic revolution, alone or in alliance with other political forces, and it takes responsibility for both success and mistakes in this period. The Assembly will focus on development and will determine policy and goals for the coming two decades. It will also review how the last Assembly’s resolutions have been implemented.
The leaders then took questions. A selection follows.
Will you change the party’s name and rules and regulations of the party?
Batbold: Yes, these will be discussed along with activity and programs.
Lundeejantsan: We are seeking a return to the original name of the party, and are not trying to establish a new party. I have checked the laws on political parties, and can say that we are acting totally within the law.
What would the proposed change in ideology mean for welfare programs?
Batbold: The party’s primary organizations have supported an amendment to the ideology, but not to abandon its leftist and Socialist International bias. Social welfare programs will continue, but their focus will be on those most in need.
Would the coalition government continue? Would the MPRP leader and the Prime Minister be different persons?
Lundeejantsan: No. The same person will hold both positions. Our collaboration agreement with the DP also will continue. An agreement cannot be canceled unilaterally. Changing the party’s name will not change our position on these matters.
There was a Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) in the 1990s, before it was legally dissolved. Can we have a party with the same name before 25 years have passed?
Khurelsukh: The MPP does not figure among the 17 political parties registered with the State Supreme Court at present. The party you refer to was established by Baasan and some monks and dissolved in 2006. So we shall not be having two parties with the same name.
source: www.news.mn
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