Democracy and Good Governance

The book presents an interdisciplinary exploration aimed at renewing interest in Luigi Einaudi’s search for “good government”, broadly understood as “good society”. Prompted by the Einaudian quest, the essays - exploring philosophy of law, economics, politics and epistemology - develop the issue of good government in several forms, including  the relationship between public and private, public governance, the question of freedom and the complexity of the human in contemporary societies.

This article deals with one of the perennial questions of legal and political philosophy, i. e., how the state should relate to religion? It makes a distinction between five models: (i) the atheist state, (ii) the theocratic state, (iii) the model of an official state church, (iv) the multiculturalist state, and (v) the agnostic state (or secular state). The authors reflect on the legitimacy of each of these models. Some states reclaim their right to adopt an official religion as their state religion or as the religious Leitkultur of their country (model iii). Others favor the support of religion as long as this is premised on the equal rights of all religions (model iv). And others think that the state can only support equal citizenship if the state does not support any religion whatsoever (model v).

News coverage summarizing some of my recent work on the political psychology of the fragility of liberal democracy and the rise of populism.  One caveat - the author of the news piece, Rick Shenkman, emphasizes a neurological and evolutionary dimension to the issue.  This is his view, not mine.

Some problems of governance regularly resurface, and the use and role of ‘quangos’— public bodies operating at arm’s-length to ministers—is a case in point. The administrative history of the British state is littered with official reviews and political debates about quangos. Historically, governments, whatever their reforming zeal, have found it difficult to make substantial changes. Now the UK government has initiated a rapid and large-scale set of reforms. This article analyses these changes and highlights five challenges for governments wishing to reform arm’s-length bodies: mapping, assessing, reconfiguring, saving, and accounting.

Development and sustenance of economic growth is contingent on savings and investments made in an economy. There are many variable factors to it and are very much interrelated and is pre-conditioned to each other. If we look around the globe, it is undeniable that Democracy or Democratic regime has positive effects on economic growth. In other words it can be said that economic growth and development also depends on the political right granted to the people and its society. That is, among many other variables for the development of economy, political development and its competitiveness can be argued as key factors along with other variables. It is a fact that political uncertainty decreases capital investment and prompts a decline in private investment. For economic growth and development with other factors, degree of political freedom, stability and security are also required to be present; in absence of these we will see tyrannical government, diverged position between the political parties and complex level of political insecurity, which shall lead to lower degree of economic performance and lower percentage of economic growth. That is, bad governance will hinder the economic growth. In other words good governance is required for economic growth for which pre condition is an elected government chosen by its people through free and fair election as per Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948, to which Bangladesh is a party. Article 21 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 says " Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives…. The will of the people shall be the basis of the authority of the government; this will be expressed in periodic and genuine elections which shall be by universal and equal suffrage and shall be held by secret vote or by equivalent free voting procedures " In recent past we have seen many incidents regarding general election, transfer of power, credibility of election. The present situation is irrelevant to discuss here as we can see from the news, international reports and human rights situation. It is undisputed fact that in any form of democratic government system general election is the prerequisite. One of the precondition for economic growth is peaceful election and transfer of power, since election is a machine by which government can be held accountable by and to the citizens, in the process commanding correction on economic policy adopted by government which is not acceptable to the citizens. However, precondition to election, among others, are

Introduction: Actions taken at the level of the European Union and related to the implementation of the European governance model are based on the assumptions of the theory of good governance. The research problem is the analysis of the process of implementation of this model in the decision-making mechanisms in the EU. Purpose: to analyse the theoretical framework for the application of the concept of good governance in the European Union, to assess the principles and to diagnose the actors responsible for the efficient functioning of the European governance model. The article verifies the hypothesis that the implementation of the concept of good governance in the European Union leads to the strengthening the elements that democratise and increase the transparency of the principles of its functioning for citizens. Methods: The study of these issues is conducted using actor-centred approach and metatheoretical research. The general scientific methods of cognition is used (analysis, synthesis, induction, deduction, description, etc.), as well as theoretical methods of formal and dialectic logic, supplemented by the specific juridical methods (juridical-dogmatic method, system and structure revealing method, and the method of legal norms interpretation). The analysis covers the normative basis of the good governance concept, with particular emphasis on actors involved in the procedures of applying and protecting the civil rights resulting from this concept. Results: The networks of individual actors, thematic platforms and transnational associations are active in numerous consultations with the European Commission. Тhis way, they are the main representatives of opinions of the EU Member States’ societies and the inspirers to take the necessary decisions. They play a similar role in the implementation phase of decisions, when the national administrations is obliged to implement the European standards into national legal acts. Then, the actors participate in consultations with the national authorities and monitor the implementation of EU programmes. Conclusions: The conducted analysis proved the functioning of civil participation in the European Union, which also means the existence of a civil control mechanisms. However, it is small, in comparison with local governments and business structures. Representatives of civic organisations submit postulates to the European Commission that it is necessary to modify the existing rules. The governments and national officials have better support – both technical, organisational and financial – to participate in monitoring the decision-making process, but representatives of civil society are deprived of any support. These conclusions lead to a reflection that the European governance model is not functioning entirely well. There must be connections between the elements of the good governance system. The presented analysis demonstrates that only some of its fragments are functioning: legal regulations, law, public consultations of several policies. These are the lonely elements of society's influence on decision-making process. The lack of strong systemic connections not only results in instability of the entire structure of EU governance, but also weakens the effectiveness of the law. // FULL TEXT --> http://metodol59.ru/images/2021/2021-perm-metodolog.pdf

CONSTITUTIONAL ANOMIE IS A DEBILITATING CONDITION. Its
symptoms include the introduction of reforms in a manner bereft
of any underlying logic or explicit principles, combined with the
inability to adopt a strategic approach that is sensitive to the interrelated nature of any constitutional configuration. Constitutional
anomie is therefore an ailment of both mental and physical health
vis-à-vis the body politic. Social and political anxiety, confusion and
frustration emerge, with the result that reforms that were designed to
enhance levels of public trust and confidence in politics, politicians
and political institutions can actually have the opposite effect. The
prognosis for constitutional anomie depends on a complex range of
factors, but not least is the creation of specific anomalies and inconsistencies that are likely to augment until the pressure for more
fundamental measures becomes inevitable. Between 1997 and 2007
the Labour governments of Tony Blair suffered from constitutional
anomie.

The World Bank has tracked six country-level Worldwide Governance Indicators since 1996.  Regression analysis across 150 countries identified two of these indicators, Government Effectiveness and Regulatory Quality, that consistently help to explain changes in economic growth and CO2 emissions.  The regression results provided the evidence needed to incorporate the effects of governance in an existing climate-population simulation model.  Policy testing of the revised model led to findings about what improved governance can and cannot do.

This article deals with one of the perennial questions of legal and political philosophy, i. e., how the state should relate to religion? It makes a distinction between five models: (i) the atheist state, (ii) the theocratic state, (iii) the model of an official state church, (iv) the multiculturalist state, and (v) the agnostic state (or secular state). The authors reflect on the legitimacy of each of these models. Some states reclaim their right to adopt an official religion as their state religion or as the religious Leitkultur of their country (model iii). Others favor the support of religion as long as this is premised on the equal rights of all religions (model iv). And others think that the state can only support equal citizenship if the state does not support any religion whatsoever (model v).

Fundament polskiego systemu politycznego stanowi Konstytucja Rzeczypospolitej Polskiej z 2 kwietnia 1997 roku. Jest ona aktem posiadającym najwyższą moc prawną, określającym naczelne zasady ustrojowe, podmioty władzy w państwie i zależności występujące między nimi, a także wolności, prawa i obowiązki obywateli. Zawiera gwarancje, które nie dopuszczają do podejmowania przez organy państwowe arbitralnych decyzji, sprzecznych z interesem demokratycznego państwa prawnego oraz ideą państwa jako dobra wspólnego urzeczywistniającego zasady sprawiedliwości społecznej.

W niniejszej publikacji wskazane zostały podstawy umocowania bezpieczeństwa politycznego państwa w przepisach Konstytucji RP z 2 kwietnia 1997 r. Przeanalizowano jego istotę w poszerzonym ujęciu obejmującym także relacje między jednostką i społeczeństwem a państwem i organami władzy, które wspólnie stanowią nierozerwalną całość. Omówiono również mechanizmy ochrony i kontroli konstytucyjnych gwarancji w postaci zasad i uprawnień określonych instytucji i podmiotów. Perspektywę badawczą dodatkowo poszerza refleksja nad przyczynami oraz przebiegiem kryzysów konstytucyjnych, jak również sytuacji nadużywania władzy przez organy państwowe wraz ze wskazaniem sposobów przeciwdziałania im.

Niewątpliwym walorem monografii jest zwrócenie uwagi na dotychczas niedostatecznie doceniany obszar komunikowania o przepisach ustawy zasadniczej w sposób rzetelny i przystępny dla obywateli. Przeprowadzona analiza dowodzi, że społeczeństwo świadome swoich praw jest o wiele trudniejsze do zmanipulowania przez władzę mającą zapędy dyktatorskie i antykonstytucyjne, a – co się z tym wiąże – bardziej zdecydowanie będzie domagało się poszanowania przysługujących mu gwarancji konstytucyjnych.

This paper responds to Jason Brennan’s prominent critique of democracy. Brennan argues that the average citizen is ignorant and irrational, and votes incompetently, exercising illegitimate authority over her neighbors, thereby violating their right against subjection to incompetent government. He concludes that society should replace democracy with epistocracy; the rule of the educated. After clarifying the requirements of Brennan’s proposal, I present two lines of defense for democratic theorists, both compatible with the competence principle at the heart of Brennan’s argument. First, democracy can satisfy the standards of competence proposed by Brennan through institutional changes. And second, epistocracy falls short of its own epistemic standards by excluding voters, despite the place of voters in the division of political labor. I conclude that Brennan’s argument does not undermine democracy’s legitimacy, and in fact speaks against his epistocratic alternative.

The article offers a systematic analysis of the comparative trajectory of international democratic change. In particular, it focuses on the resulting convergence or divergence of political systems, borrowing from the literatures on institutional change and policy convergence. To this end, political-institutional data in line with Arend Lijphart’s (1999, 2012) empirical theory of democracy for 24 developed democracies between 1945 and 2010 are analyzed. Heteroscedastic multilevel models allow for directly modeling the development of the variance of types of democracy over time, revealing information about convergence, and adding substantial explanations. The findings indicate that there has been a trend away from extreme types of democracy in single cases, but no unconditional trend of convergence can be observed. However, there are conditional processes of convergence. In particular, economic globalization and the domestic veto structure interactively influence democratic convergence.

Deutschland steht vor gewaltigen Herausforderungen: Klimakrise und Zerstörung der Ökosysteme, die Covid-19 Pandemie und der rasante demographische und technologische Wandel lassen sich in den tradierten Verwaltungsstrukturen nicht mehr angemessen adressieren. Es bedarf eines grundlegenden Kulturwandels in der öffentlichen Verwaltung, um Deutschland schneller, antizipativer und effektiver durch die nächsten Jahrzehnte der Transformationen führen zu können. Dazu gehören ein neues Selbstverständnis sowie entsprechende agile Prozesse, zeitgemäße Kompetenzen, eine horizontale und vertikale Öffnung des Staates, ernst gemeinte Öffentlichkeitsbeteiligung und Transparenz, institutionalisierte Zusammenarbeit mit der Zivilgesellschaft, Wissenschaft und Wirtschaft, bottom-up Föderalismus-und vieles mehr. Wirklich handlungsfähig sind demokratische Regierungen erst durch funktionsfähige Verwaltungen und ein vertrauensvolles Zusammenwirken mit gesellschaftlichen Akteur:innen. Daher müssen wir die öffentliche Verwaltung in ihrer Kernfunktion stärken: die Aufrechterhaltung des freiheitlich-demokratischen Rechtsstaates. Der Anspruch muss sein, dass Bürger:innen die öffentliche Verwaltung als wichtigen Anker in der Transformation und nicht als notwendiges Übel sehen. Dass sie die Kompetenzen der Verwaltungsmitarbeitenden wertschätzen und anerkennen. Dass sie die administrativen Abläufe und Entscheidungen nachvollziehen und nicht als Belastung, sondern als Mehrwert empfinden und produktiv für sich nutzen können. Dass sie in die Handlungsfähigkeit des Staates Vertrauen haben.

History never repeats itself but it is surprising how often it rhymes. Although the ‘new politics’ narrative, promoting a stark institutional and cultural shift away from the power-hoarding and adversarial system of politics and government, has been a constant theme of British politics for several decades there has been surprisingly little change at the national level. This might, at first glance, appear a counterintuitive line of reasoning in light of, inter alia, the introduction of devolution, incorporation of the European Charter of Human Rights (ECHR) and the establishment of a Supreme Court. And yet the critical dimension of the reform agenda does not lie in the individual institutional reforms, but in the superstructure: the reform agenda was constructed within and conditioned by the precepts of the Westminster model.

Las Evaluaciones de Impacto Ambiental (EIA) surgen en
Estados Unidos por medio de la Ley de Política Pública
Ambiental Nacional (NEPA) en 1970 como un método para
integrar una «racionalidad ambiental» a la política pública y
los procesos burocráticos realizando una evaluación holística
y multidisciplinaria que examina las consecuencias de
acciones de desarrollo previo al mismo. En otras palabras,
la EIA es un componente de un buen gobierno dirigido a
garantizar la protección ambiental, que a su vez incide en
el bienestar y desarrollo de nuestra sociedad. Mediante un
análisis descriptivo, el presente trabajo analizó veintitrés (23)
Declaraciones de Impacto Ambiental realizadas en Puerto Rico
entre los años 2005-2013. Los documentos se examinaron
según las leyes y reglamentos vigentes a nivel local, así como
en la literatura internacional sobre el tema de evaluaciones
ambientales. El análisis demostró algunas incongruencias
entre lo planteado en la literatura y política pública para el buen
gobierno ambiental. Entre estas: la preparación inadecuada de
las EIA; un dominio de lenguaje técnico; la exclusión de factores
de biodiversidad; la minimización mediante lenguaje de los
impactos; descripción muy pobre del medioambiente; análisis
incompleto de los impactos ambientales; metodología clara
ambigua; y una justificación economicista que no considera
realmente los costos y beneficios ambientales de los proyectos
y sus alternativas. [Palabras clave: evaluación de impacto
ambiental, declaración de impacto ambiental (DIA), política
pública ambiental, buen gobierno].

Environmental Impact Assessments (EIA) arises in United States through the National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) in 1970 as a method for integrate an "environmental rationality" into public policy and
bureaucratic processes conducting a holistic evaluation and multidisciplinary that examines the consequences of development actions prior to it. In other words, the EIA is a component of a good government aimed at guarantee environmental protection, which in turn affects the welfare and development of our society. Through a
descriptive analysis, the present work analyzed twenty-three (23)
Environmental Impact Statements made in Puerto Rico
between the years 2005-2013. The documents were examined
according to the laws and regulations in force at the local level, as well as  in the international literature on the subject of evaluations
environmental. The analysis showed some inconsistencies
between what was raised in literature and public policy for good
environmental government Among these: inadequate preparation of
the EIAs; a technical language domain; the exclusion of factors
of biodiversity; the minimization through language of
impacts; very poor description of the environment; analysis
incomplete environmental impacts; clear methodology
ambiguous and an economic justification that does not consider
really the environmental costs and benefits of the projects
and its alternatives. [Keywords: environmental impact assessment
(EIA), environmental impact statement (EIS), environmental policy, good governance].

El propósito de este boletín es identificar los elementos que tienen mayor efecto positivo en el ejercicio de presupuesto participativo en el ámbito local en Jalisco, así como sus principales oportunidades y restricciones. Se estudian los casos de dos municipios no metropolitanos: Acatlán de Juárez y Etzatlán. Se abordan como los factores centrales: la confianza pública, la eficacia y la apertura gubernamentales, el entorno presupuestal y financiero municipal, así como la participación
y la organización ciudadanas. Se concluye que los presupuestos participativos son un mecanismo efectivo para recobrar la confianza en el

gobierno, siempre y cuando éste canalice la participación ciudadana de manera profesional, abierta e incluyente. Finalmente, se ofrece una serie de recomendaciones de política pública, tales como incrementar la recaudación local con el compromiso de que los recursos extra sean sometidos a un proceso de presupuesto participativo, fomentar la educación cívica como mecanismo de construcción de ciudadanía e impulsar una reforma amplia de la administración pública enfocada en fortalecer las capacidades tanto técnicas como éticas de los funcionarios públicos.

The aim of this article is to place the African Union’s (AU) membership admission approach within the context of the aspiration to deepen regional integration efforts in Africa. Put in more specific terms, to what extent should values such as democratic principles, good governance, rule of law, and free and fair elections impact on admission of members into institutional activities? Despite the fact that the AU Constitutive Act espouses these values in Articles 3 and 4, the AU has rather prioritised the lax requirements of geography, simple majority vote, and the ratification of its Act as conditions for membership. It is argued that these lax membership rules contradict the supranational aspiration of the organisation, and rather best suits an intergovernmental entity. In addressing this, the article recommends the need to include strict conditions for membership in the AU Constitutive Act, and the enhancement of the role of AU organs in regulating initiatives that promote democratic practises in member states.

Since 2008, the impact of the global financial markets meltdown, often attributed to the downturn in sub-prime mortgage industry in advanced Western economies, have resulted in worldwide deterioration of living standards, mass unemployment and the
collapse of various social programmes. In many developing countries, the crisis has disrupted modest economic gains and continues to undermine various attempts at securing sustainable wealth and jobs. Drawing from a critical reflection of the themes
of governance and capacity development, and the concepts of “sustainable social protection systems” and “social dialogue” advanced by the International Labour Organisation, this paper explores various means by which the public sector could be
strengthened to create wealth and employment amid the current economic crises. The paper challenges policy makers to meet mounting citizens’ expectations and various international and governmental commitments to commit to full employment and
poverty reduction through state-driven interventions. It argues, among others, that without an effective and dynamic public sector that has the capacity to undertake constructive engagements with other private actors, a strong state may be unable to meet the expectations and promises of jobs and income growth. The analysis points to the need to blend traditional administrative tools with innovative techniques revolving around information communication technologies, public-private partnerships and best-fit inclusive governance processes for effective policy making to drive economic
growth and full employment

La recente riforma del Terzo settore (L. n. 106 del 6 giugno 2016) costituisce un punto di arrivo di un mutamento del mondo associativo avvenuto negli ultimi decenni ma anche il punto di partenza di un processo attuativo che si produrrà nel corso dei prossimi anni. Il presente articolo presenta le caratteristiche salienti della riforma, ne indica alcune delle principali sfide aperte e opportunità e ne mette in luce alcuni possibili rischi, in particolare riguardo al rapporto con il welfare pubblico, al centralismo della governance del nuovo sistema e delle forme di rappresentanza. L'esito di questa sfida dipenderà da quanto gli attori istituzionali chiamati ad attuarla, in particolare governo centrale ed enti locali e quelli dello stesso Terzo settore, sapranno bilanciare il processo di ibridazione col mercato con il mantenimento del radicamento territoriale e culturale del Terzo settore.

This chapter describes the significance of the Universal House of Justice for the development of the Bahá’í community as well as for the well-being of humanity as a whole. To understand the singular role of this global institution, the chapter first provides an overview of the Covenant that Bahá’u’lláh made with His followers and the essential place of the House of Justice within this Covenant. The chapter then discusses how the House of Justice was first established in 1963 and the manner in which it is regularly elected. Finally, it considers the unique station of the House of Justice as well as the powers and duties it exercises in guiding the Bahá’ís around the world in their efforts to apply the teachings of Bahá’u’lláh and promote the unity of humankind. Particular emphasis is placed on its mandate to preserve the sacred text, facilitate growth, and enact legislation. It is recommended that this chapter be read along with the chapter ‘The Writings of the Universal House of Justice’ (Smith), which offers further insights into the vast range of its guidance as it relates to advancing social, material, and spiritual development at the individual and collective levels.

This article addresses the question of what drives the character and orientation of South Africa's foreign policy post the apartheid era. The shift from apartheid to democracy in 1994 brought with it a new paradigm shift in both South Africa's domestic and foreign policy agenda. This was also driven by the need to redress the destabilization policies of the apartheid regime. The demise of apartheid in 1994 brought with it immense jubilation both continentally and abroad and South Africa was now for the first time in years reintegrated into the global economy. By undertaking this enquiry, the study attempts to draw a nuanced evaluation of South Africa's foreign policy, particularly in Southern Africa since its transition to democracy in 1994.

Governance is a complex issue due to its wide range of dimensions. To uplift the quality of the government there are some international agencies those use to extend their cooperation. But the nature and way of providing advices are sometimes misleading and incorrect. The reason behind the provision of inaccurate and biased recommendations is the authoritative behavior of the international organizations. The dominance of some of the developed countries and weak economy of the aid recipients ’ countries are also responsible for this. Whatever the form the governance possesses it is a pre-requisite for economic development for all economic entities. Based on secondary evidences this paper makes an attempt to analyze the role of the World Bank and other International Organizations in the context with aid. To ensure a realistic level of development the countries must have appropriate guidelines for setting its strategy. The World Bank and other influential international organizations may...

The COVID-19 pandemic underscored the indivisibility and interdependence of human rights, as states’ pre-existing failure to realise economic and social rights, especially the right to health, exacerbated the spread of the virus, in turn creating the conditions for authoritarian power grabs and severe incursions into rights of all kinds. This chapter argues that it is mistaken to conceive of COVID-19 – or future pandemics – principally as a threat whose eradication requires rights to be sacrificed. Nor do human rights hinder decisive action to contain disease. Rather, human rights standards and principles offer a means of transparently balancing competing priorities in the cauldron of decision-making during a health emergency. The chapter synthesises trends in states’ human rights performance during the pandemic and explains the wide-ranging nature of their obligations. It explores routes to accountability for governments’ actions and omissions and discusses the human rights dimension of access to vaccines, and ‘immunity certificates’. The chapter concludes by looking ahead to the application of human rights in the post-COVID-19 world and preparedness for future pandemics.

This radical critique reclaims and recasts the ‘Transition Paradigm’, countering the habit of using advanced and successful democratic transitions as a template to be followed in other regions. It argues that the Arab (and broader Middle Eastern) experience has important lessons to offer, even in its failures. For example, it could help to explain the West's recent populist upsurge and other democratic reversals.

The paper analyzes Ethiopia's ethnic-based politics using four primary categories in a new theoretical framework. 
A new analytical framework is presented as a possible toolkit for solving our long-standing problem related to ethnic-based politics.

This paper is Part I of a longer article. Part I introduces the theoretical framework and discusses Tigrayan ethno-nationalism as spearheaded by the TPLF.

This paper focuses about the South west Airlines epitomizes the concept of teamwork and a people centered culture. According to Gary Kelly its Chairman, President and CEO , Our people are our single greatest strength and most enduring long term competitive advantage. Southwest has an extensive training and development program for his employees that focuses on building their leadership and teamwork skills.

Četiri se glavna povijesna modela lokalne samouprave u Europi: francuski (napoleonski, južnoeuropski), njemački (germanski, porajnski), švedski (skandinavski, nordijski) i engleski (anglosaksonski), kojima neki autori dodaju i peti model, srednjoeurop¬ski odnosno model bivših socijalističkih zemalja, u nekim elementima međusobno sve više približavaju. Komponente te tendencije harmonizacije lokalne samouprave u Europi identificirane u ovom radu su traženje novog legitimiteta, instrumentalizacija lokalne samouprave, ujednačavanje kruga lokalnih poslova, potpora razvoju, uključenost u rješavanje teških društvenih problema, racionalizacija, diverzifikacija financiranja, privatizacija, teritorijalna konsolidacija, regionalizacija, policentrične urbane mreže, višerazinsko upravljanje, redefiniranje vertikalne dimenzije lokalne samouprave, kvalitetno upravljanje procesima decentralizacije. Kritički se evaluira stanje hrvatske lokalne samouprave po tim komponentama i daju određene preporuke kako bi se sustav lokalne samouprave približio standardima hrvatskog Ustava i Europske povelje o lokalnoj samoupravi.
Ključne riječi: Europska povelja o lokalnoj samoupravi, Europska unija, europeizacija, harmonizacija, lokalna i regionalna samouprava – Hrvatska, razvojni trendovi

Citation: Malek, J.A.; Lim, S.B.; Yigitcanlar, T. Social Inclusion Indicators for Building Citizen-Centric Smart Cities: A Systematic Literature Review. Sustainability 2021, 13, 376.
Abstract: Despite the rhetoric of "citizen-first," which has been tokenized in recent years by the smart city administrations, what it means has long been unclear to many, including the public at large. Put simply, this rhetoric concerns the mindset of the members of a local community and places them at the heart of the smart city initiatives. In order to bring further clarity to this issue under the current neoliberal urbanism, this study aimed to identify the key indicators of citizen-centric smart cities from the perspective of participative governance practices and citizens' responsibilities. To achieve this aim, this study involved a systematic literature review of the social inclusion indicators for building citizen-centric smart cities. The social inclusion indicators that were formed were verified by practitioners to suit the local contexts of an emerging and developing country, in this case, Malaysia. The findings of the review revealed that: (a) the acceptance of social inclusion indicators was mainly limited to the realm of democratic developed countries, leaders' understanding of citizenship, the delegation of decision-making power in governance practices, the participative culture of societies, and individual citizens' self-discipline; (b) the social inclusion indicators may not be welcomed in emerging and developing countries; (c) in the long term, these indicators would shed light on the rise of self-organizing cities that will gain popularity in potential city developments, be it in developed or developing countries.

This article offers an argument of almost primitive simplicity: politics tends to promise too much and deliver too little. In order to substantiate this argument this article presents the results of the first attempt to analyse an experiment with participatory democracy through the lens of ‘gap analysis’. This approach focuses attention on the creation, management and fulfilment of public expectations vis-a`-vis products, services or experiences. In a historical period in which the fiscal and social resources of democratic politics are severely limited the argument and empirical research set out in this article offer valuable insights for scholars and practitioners of politics and public policy. Central amongst these is the suggestion that responding to unprecedented levels of anti-political sentiment is likely to demand that politicians pay more attention to the management of public expectations (i.e. demand) and less on how to maximise political outputs in terms of public services (i.e. supply).

This thesis assesses the African Peer Review Mechanism (APRM) as it has played out in Nigeria. The APRM is an initiative by the African Union (AU) and the New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) to promote good governance through self-assessment and monitoring by African states. The APRM is particularly interesting as a continental (rather than single country) programme which puts the good governance agenda in the hands of African states themselves (rather than international financial institutions, for example). Focusing on the National Programme of Action (NPoA) of 2009 - 2012, the research finds that the APRM has had little or no impact on governance in Nigeria. Notwithstanding the NPoA's limited contributions to national development, the entire process has failed to recognise, engage and tackle the underlying socio-political dynamics of politics in the country, which have the most impact on governance structures and processes. The thesis accounts for this outcome by examining structure (through the role of actors) and underlying socio-political dynamics, both nationally and internationally. In terms of actors the research explores the role of individual leaders, NEPAD and APRM secretariats (national and continental), federal state representatives, regional and sub-regional organisations, international donors, and civil society in the APRM process. In terms of underlying factors, Richard Joseph's theory of prebendalism gives analytical power to understanding the APRM within Nigeria's political culture, while the neo-Gramscian perspective of cultural hegemony enables an analysis of the APRM within the broader international context. Both contribute to a holistic assessment of the APRM in Nigeria. Neither one of these two theoretical contributions is able to offer a comprehensive assessment if used unmodified or on their own. The APRM has the potential to open new political spaces for collaborative engagement between government and civil society in Nigeria, with the possibility of beneficial effects for governance and accountability. So far, however, this potential has not been realised. This must be judged as a significant shortcoming to date.

Since public sector reform initiatives, public accountability and transparency have advanced democracy and good governance on managing state finances. State financial management mechanism involves regional policies and fiscal decentralization trend in the devolution of responsibility for empowerment from central to local units of governments, but the governance face challenges to effectively manage and control the use of public funds that best meet citizen’s needs. This study determines the effect of public accountability and transparency on the management of state finances in Indonesia, as well as the extent to which public accountability and transparency affect the management of state finances. Based on a descriptive quantitative case-oriented research approach, 60 survey interviews are collected and analyzed with multiple linear regression analysis techniques. This study concludes that Public Accountability partially has a significant effect on the Financial Management Mechanism. On the other hand, partially public transparency has no significant effect on the State Financial Management Mechanism. Cumulatively, some aspects of Public Accountability and Transparency have a significant effect on the State Financial Management Mechanism. If unaccountability in decentralise administrative model prevails, the problem of ineffective policy output may persist to impair sustainable finance and public values for good governance in times of covid-19 crisis-related society

El presente análisis presenta algunos parámetros de evaluación de la democracia mexicana en dos planos: el de los diagnósticos y el de los debates. Para tal fin, sin ánimo de exhaustividad, en la primera parte de se ofrece una recapitulación de los indicadores más importantes sobre varios aspectos de la democracia en perspectiva comparada y, en la segunda parte, presentamos seis diagnósticos sobre su situación que identificamos en el debate público. Por último, presentamos algunas conclusiones sobre el estudio de los problemas más agudos de la democracia mexicana, como aparecen retratados en estos instrumentos.

This paper inspects the form of freedom that exists in Dubai to make people living in the city happy and satisfied. I ponder Berlin's two notions of negative and positive freedom to see whether these notions can truly categorically exclude one another in the definition of freedom, and if so, which one applies in Dubai. I base my research on the assumption that the aim of every political/economic system is to make people happy and that the way to people's happiness is through the satisfaction of their desires of survival and well-being. The results I succumb to show that Berlin's two notions of freedom are intricately related on many levels: both partisans of positive and negative freedom seem to disregard the fact that, the subjectivity suggested by negative freedom does not exclude the presence of an objective element in negative freedom and, consequently the objectivity suggested by positive freedom does not exclude the presence of a subjective element in it. The categorically dualistic conception of freedom suggested by Berlin would thus be incomplete and the necessity of freedom would dwell in a form of a dialectic synthesis between negative and positive freedom, that which I call Dialectic Freedom. This is the form of freedom that prevails in Dubai.

Plato's Republic critiques Athenian democracy as practised during the Peloponnesian War years. The diseased city Socrates attempts to purge mirrors Athens in crucial particulars, and his proposals should be evaluated as counterweights to existing institutions and practices, not as absolutes to be instantiated. Plato's assessment of the Athenian polity incorporates two strategies-one rhetorical, the other argumentative-both of which I address. Failure to consider Athens a catalyst for Socrates' arguments has led to the misconception that Plato was dogmatically committed to a single political doctrine for all and for all time. Plato's Republic is an internal, constructive critique of Athenian democracy as it was practised during the years of the Peloponnesian War, the extended dramatic date of the dialogue. 3 While I do not claim to exhaust the purposes of the dialogue with such a sweeping statement, this aspect of Plato's approach has been a bystander in the crossfire between, on the one hand, those who take Plato to be a utopian and his dialogue a blueprint and, on the other, those who take Plato to be an anti-utopian who issues a dire warning against any polis established on such a blueprint. I argue that Plato's Socrates' proposals for a kallipolis, the key features of which contrast sharply with those of Athens herself , are a mark of a deliberate argumentative strategy played out against the background of an equally deliberate rhetorical strategy. I Plato's Rhetorical Strategy The Republic is shaped like a temple pediment or letter L, with aspects of the second half of the dialogue arranged in correspondence to aspects of the first.

En el presente artículo (publicado el 17 de octubre de 2017 en la Revista Éufrates) se analizan las principales ideas reflejadas en el Discurso de Pericles, recogido por Tucídides en el Libro II de la Historia de la Guerra del Peloponeso. Su relevancia reside en ser el primer manifiesto de la teoría democrática.

In this introduction into the special issue on state capture and security sector governance, we argue that state capture is a relevant concept that helps us understand the current autocratisation and the rise of hybrid regimes. We argue that the extraction of public resources via party patronage, privatization of public administration, judiciary, security institutions, and media are vital for influencing political competition. In the second part of the article, we argue that the concept of state capture brings added value to the understanding of security governance and transformations. We show why the parts or whole of security and justice institutions are the inevitable targets of state capture and what it means to understand the success of security sector reform (SSR). Finally, we examine a range of possible positions of the security sector within the captors and what it means for both the literature on state capture and civil-military relations.