Platform-Enabled People Governance (PEPG): A Problem-Centered, Platform-Enabled Model for Distributed Public Governance

Abstract

This paper proposes Platform-Enabled People Governance (PEPG), a conceptual model of public governance organized around public problems rather than around a single institution, bureaucracy, or digital platform. PEPG places a public problem at the center and connects citizens, experts, government institutions, implementers, funders, contractors, and oversight actors through distributed participation spaces. The model distinguishes open public participation in problem identification and solution development from controlled participation in implementation and formal oversight. PEPG is platform-agnostic. WhatsApp, Telegram, X, GitHub, dedicated government systems, or other digital environments may serve as participation spaces without becoming the governance model itself. The paper also discusses transparency, independent oversight, contracts, legislative inputs, tamper-evident records, blockchain as an optional integrity layer, institutional capacity, decision-making speed, prevention of concentration and capture, and safeguards against external influence. This publication represents an early conceptual formulation of PEPG and is intended to support further academic discussion, critique, experimentation, and development.