Public hearings, Master Plan and democratic participation in the covid-19 pandemic: considerations from the Public Attorney´s office acting on the revision of the Natal/RN Master Plan case

Abstract

This research proposes to discuss popular participation in this pandemic moment of covid-19 considering the limitations caused by the spread of the virus, which made presential meetings impossible, and generated some impacts on areas of the law, thus, we problematized the realization of virtual public hearings with the panorama of digital exclusion and the job of the institutions of the justice systems. That said, the main objective of the present work is analyze in what extent the acting of the Public Attorney´s office implicates in the guaranty of public participation on the virtual public hearings, considering the pandemic context. Based on this assumptions, this research has exploratory nature, using the hypothetical-deductive method, proceeds on bibliographic and documentary survey about the theme, intending to understand the doctrinal and legal framework that leaded to the context in analysis. Concluded that, despites the limitations of the pandemic, the administrative democracy can´t be left behind, allowing that the neoliberal logics continues to produce more discretionary decisions that segregates the interests of the minorities, therefore, the intervention of the Public Attorney’s Office is essential to guaranty the popular participation right, as well as the effectuation of the administrative democracy.