公共权力的公共性:价值异化与理性回归

Public Attribute of Public Power: Value Alienation and Rational Return

理论上,公共利益是公共权力产生和运行的合法性与正当性基础。公共权力源起于维护和增进公共利益的实际需求,是增进与维护公共利益的工具与保障,公共利益则是公共权力的目的与旨归。实践中,由于受公共权力运行悖论、公私利益冲突、政府职能转变不到位等因素的影响,公共权力与公共利益的天然联结常常面临着大量体制、机制与技术等方面干扰的现实困境,出现公共权力递延化、私有化、商品化等失灵现象,并催生腐败,加剧社会利益失衡,造成政治信任流失和党的执政基础的削弱。在我国大力推进依法治国的时代背景下,法治化理应成为公共权力服务公共利益的路径选择。因此,要以维护和实现公共利益最大化为原则,以公共权力依法运行为基准,使公共权力回归到服务公共利益的本质特征,实现公共权力维护和增进公共利益的目的性和工具性的统一。

Theoretically, public interest is the basis for public power to come into being and operate legally and properly. Public power originates from the actual demand to safeguard and enhance public interest. It is an instrument and guarantee to maintain and enhance public interest. Whereas, public interest is the purpose and fundamental aim of public power. In practice, due to operation paradox of public power, conflict between public interest and private interest, and incomplete transformation of government function, the natural connection between public power and public interest often faces many interference from the system, the mechanism, and technology. Public power fails to function properly as it is often deferred, privatized, and commercialized. This breeds corruption, aggregates social interest imbalance, leads to the loss of political trust and the weakening of CPC＇s ruling foundation. As China is vigorously advocating ruling the country by law, legislation should be the choice for public power to serve public interest. Therefore, we have to take safeguard and maximization of public interest as principle, and exercise of public power in accordance with law as baseline to make public power return to its essence—serving public interest, achieving both its purpose value and instrument value.