Direct Popular Participation and Crises in Public Servives in Argentina: The Gordian Knot

Abstract

Popular participation in the public services is something that is necessary, but its date of arrival is still far away. There exist some tools of participation called Public Meetings, but they do not work in the case of the public services. They are sporadic and at best attract 1% of the millions of users of the services. Access to information is the first step in progress towards popular participation. In Argentina there is a decree that states “Improvement in quality of Democracy and its Institutions” (1172/2003). It establishes an extensive system of participation for the Regulatory Bodies of the Public Services. But it has a very reduced practical reach because it returns to promoting public meetings, amongst other limited tools. It is not enough. The public services in Argentina suffer from problems of a lack of investment and they are subsidised to maintain their tariffs within the reach of the purchasing power of the populace-users. In some cases such as rail transport the crisis is more serious, in others it is, for the moment, just dangerous. Popular participation of the users directly with the providers (i.e. direct popular participation) can attenuate and share out the effects of the crisis. It can also anticipate and limit the impact of the crisis on the providers and its inevitable reflection on civil society. Lastly, and very importantly, direct popular participation is one of the most effective tools in the fight against corruption. The organization of access to information is not just a question of decrees, laws and rules, but it also a question of management. New and creative management.