Narzędzie demokratyzacji czy instytucja do poprawy? Spór o samorząd we współczesnej polskiej myśli politycznej

Abstract

The article attempts at presenting one of the sides of the dispute over local government
in Polish political thought after 1989. Special attention was paid to the assessment of the
condition of home rule. The author points to the fact that left wing and liberal movements
most often viewed local government as institutions building civil society. Conservative and
Christian democracy movements, while appreciating the meaning of local government,
concentrated more on its implementation barriers and dysfunctions, with partisanship
mentioned most prominently among the latter category. Some of the political writers stated
that “party system claimed local governments”. Others emphasized that politicization of local
government elections did not introduce significant changes in Polish politics at a local level.
City activists attribute an important role to local governments. They emphasize the meaning
of responsiveness understood as reacting to the needs of locals. Regardless of the opinions
and evaluations throughout the Polish political thought local government is perceived as an
important element of structural order.
Key words: local government, civil society, political values, apoliticallity, city activists.