The Sources of Distortion of Local Public Interest

Abstract

The public interest is a syntagm frequently used to account for the projects and the actions of the local government authorities. The study analyses the way local elected officials relate to the content and the meaning of this concept. The quality of the social dialogue, the duality of the public life, the referential models of public policies are some sources of the gap between the administrative agenda and the citizens ‘agenda. Accepting the public interest as a guiding rule in designing the activities for the community welfare involves adjusting both the ambitions of the politicians and the social and economic pressures. The representation of the public interest requires temporary compromise, transparent decisions, based on evidence, innovation and creativity.