Prior to this change, the oldest member of the Parliament read out the oath, “As a member of the Parliament of Mongolia, I swear to uphold the interests of all citizens and the state, respect the state law, and perform my duties honestly.”, and the other members follow him or her and repeat this oath.
However, in accordance with the amendments to the relevant law, the words “to be free from corruption and conflict of interest” were added to the oath, and the members elected in the 2020 parliamentary elections took the new oath one by one on June 30, 2020.
This change was proposed by the Independent Authority Against Corruption(IAAC) of Mongolia. Mr. Dashdavaa Zandraa, Chairman of IAAC said, "The state power of Mongolia is in the hands of the Mongolian people. The Constitution states that this power will be exercised through a member of the Parliament. Therefore, a member of the Parliament must work for the state and the people. We believe that a member of the Parliament must understand this responsibility from the very first day of taking the oath of office. The oath's words "to be free from corruption and conflict of interest" will prevent members of the Parliament from being involved in any corruption and conflict of interest."
Mongolian daily newspaper published an article regarding the amendment entitled “An Oath of MP have a risk of becoming Jackknife” which may have given another signal to new members of Parliament.
