Trending on X (6 p.m.): Uyanga and the press, Chromebooks, Bolormaa, Oyu Tolgoi, sports complex

These are the 10 topics Mongolian users discussed most on X between 14:13 and 18:13 (Ulaanbaatar time) on October 15, ranked by the likes, reposts and views of the leading posts. The afternoon conversation centred on the dispute between citizen G. Uyanga and the press, traffic in central Ulaanbaatar, spending on Chromebooks, pressure on journalists, a statement by MP E. Bolormaa and Oyu Tolgoi. Topics from earlier roundups are included only where there was a new development. Figures are as of 18:45.

1. G. Uyanga criticises the press as the capital's 306 media contracts resurface (new development)

After her statement outside the Anti-Corruption Agency covered in the 2 p.m. roundup, citizen G. Uyanga made sharp remarks aimed at the press in the afternoon. In a video posted by NewsPress she accused some journalists of "living off our taxes under the name of journalism", and in a video posted by Graph News she said former Ulaanbaatar mayor H. Nyambaatar "may have" employed 14 people at the city administration's offices as "social media staff" to run troll accounts. We have not independently verified the troll allegation and treat it only as her claim.

The most-engaged post in this window came from @margadism, who recalled that the capital signed 306 publicly funded contracts with media outlets in 2024–2025 and demanded a report on the results. The figure is not new: according to ikon.mn in June, the NGO Mongolian Youth Alliance cited 306 contracts worth about MNT 3 billion in total when it presented its analysis of the capital's 2024–2025 media spending at a budget oversight hearing.

2. Traffic in the city centre and a new car park under the Olympic Bridge (new)

Gridlock in central Ulaanbaatar on a snowy day drew criticism on X. Read our report (in Mongolian) on the temporary closure of the Central Square bus stop for the National Defence University's 105th-anniversary parade. @Gumpaa wrote "stop staging events on the square and the traffic will ease", while @Gonchig13 criticised a ceremony with cadets lined up on Sukhbaatar Square in the middle of the jams.

Meanwhile @iamhuulich shared photos of the lot under the Olympic Bridge, where residents have long parked informally, being turned into a car park, and welcomed the move. We could not find official information on which agency is carrying out the work. Forecasters have warned of snowstorms and a sharp cold snap over the central provinces tomorrow and the eastern provinces on the 17th.

3. Chromebooks: MP G. Luvsanjamts says he cannot back the MNT 800 billion plan (new development)

The topic, covered in the 2 a.m. roundup through MP Ch. Anar's criticism, returned during the budget debate. In a video posted by Graph News, MP G. Luvsanjamts said: "The Ministry of Education has proposed buying Chromebooks for MNT 800 billion over three years. I cannot support this." He argued that schools should be built first, noting that children are studying on plastic chairs.

According to MPress, the government approved the "one student, one computer; one classroom, one smart board" programme by Resolution No. 223 on May 27, 2026, planning to supply 300,000 laptops and 15,000 smart boards to general education schools. Education Minister L. Enkh-Amgalan has said each computer is costed at MNT 1.5 million, with payment spread over three to five years through the Development Bank's financial leasing arm.

4. Journalists: a man claiming to be a bailiff at S. Budragchaa's door, and T. Shinebayar's hunger strike continues (new development)

According to Eguur.mn, journalist S. Budragchaa said that at 13:35 today a man in plain clothes pounded on her door claiming to be from the court enforcement agency and frightened her family by saying she would be banned from leaving the country and arrested. She said she has no court sentence, debt or open criminal case, and that the General Executive Agency of Court Decisions told her its officers could not have acted that way and always visit in uniform. Her post drew more than 2,400 views on X, but we have not embedded it because it contains a photo of the man.

Posts also spread saying journalist T. Shinebayar's dry hunger strike had reached 80 hours. Eguur.mn reported that a court extended his pre-trial detention by 30 days and that his lawyer announced he had gone on a dry hunger strike.

5. MP E. Bolormaa speaks about the case against her (new development)

In a video posted by Graph News, MP E. Bolormaa said she is under investigation over allegations of illegally handing out money during the election and has signed the resolution naming her as a defendant, adding that she ran against wealthy business figures in the 2024 election. She said she is confident she did not interfere with the investigation and has complained to the Inter-Parliamentary Union that her rights have been violated.

According to earlier reports by iSee.mn and UBN, Bolormaa is being investigated as a defendant under Article 14.5, paragraph 2.3 of the Criminal Code over a MNT 30 million donation from a foreign-invested company that she allegedly spent on her 2024 campaign, and she has been barred from leaving the country since March 3, 2026. No court has ruled on the case. Read about the Inter-Parliamentary Union's decision here (in Mongolian).

6. Oyu Tolgoi: the dividend debate continues as Q3 copper output rises 27% (new development)

In its report published on October 14, Rio Tinto said Oyu Tolgoi copper production rose 27% year on year in the third quarter and 29% year to date, and BloombergTV Mongolia highlighted quarterly output of 114,000 tonnes. Read more in our separate report.

The dividend debate has not died down. @Baabarniitlelch criticised asking the public how to spend a large dividend that has not yet been confirmed, while the two sides have not finalised an agreement. Ikon.mn published MP Sh. Byambasuren's view that he suspects "election money" because MNT 1 trillion of the dividend, said to be headed for the wealth fund, has been entered as spending in the 2027 budget. @SolongooBayars1 wrote that parliament plans to pass a Minerals Law amendment cutting the copper royalty tomorrow, but we could not confirm that such a vote is scheduled. Ikon.mn reported in June that the ruling party's caucus had decided at the time not to touch the copper royalty in the amendment.

7. Ground broken for the Mongolia-China heads of state sports complex (new)

According to the Office of the President, President U. Khurelsukh and Cao Li, chargé d'affaires of the Chinese Embassy, attended the ceremony to begin construction of the "Mongolia-China Heads of State Sports Complex" on Khunnu Street in the 36th khoroo of Bayanzurkh District. The project is funded by a 779-million-yuan Chinese grant, and the 58,000-square-metre complex is scheduled to open in 2030. Read more in our separate report.

8. Mongolian man in Miami accused of shooting a delivery driver (new)

24tsag.mn and MPress, citing US media, reported that S. Khuslen, a 33-year-old of Mongolian origin living in Miami-Dade County, Florida, was arrested on accusations of shooting an Uber Eats driver and striking him on the head with the butt of a handgun. According to the police report, the incident happened in the early hours of October 12 when the driver returned to get the phone number of the suspect's girlfriend. No court has ruled on the case, and he is presumed innocent. The case caused a stir among Mongolians in the US and was widely discussed on X.

9. Phone repairer returns stolen handsets to their owners (new)

NTV reported that mobile phone repairer B. Badrakh has begun confiscating phones brought in by pickpockets and returning them to their owners, saying he has returned about 40 so far. "I want to show, starting with my own trade, that citizens can fight theft themselves," he said. @Adiyag04 shared his call for repairers to stop buying stolen phones.

10. Mongolian citizen saves two lives in a fire in Switzerland (new)

According to Foreign Minister B. Battsetseg, S. Bodgerel, a Mongolian citizen living in Lausanne, saved a 12-year-old girl and an 85-year-old resident during a fire in a 13-storey apartment building on October 2 and quickly put out the blaze. iSee.mn reported that Swiss professional services praised her courage and that a Swiss citizen sent a letter of thanks to the Mongolian Embassy in Switzerland.

---

Methodology: We ranked posts from about 200 major news and influential accounts found through X search, plus more than 50 keyword searches, by an engagement score (likes + 2× reposts + views/100), and checked the facts against news sites. Posts that could not be verified or that carried a risk of defamation were left out. Views expressed by individuals on X do not represent the position of egov.mn.