Monero is comparably as decentralized as Bitcoin by node count.
Monero is FOSS just like Bitcoin. It can be forked if the community doesn't like the direction. No one is being forced to buy or use Monero. At any moment if you don't like the direction it is heading you can sell it or swap for another crypto and no one can stop you. Completely voluntary free market.
Still not a single contentious hardfork in Monero because there are clear goals. Meanwhile, Bitcoin doesn't hardfork but *still* couldn't avoid userbase fear and turmoil during the blocksize wars. And they *still* had to compromise with Segwit.
But good thing both projects can exist and run their own expirements. They're not mutually exclusive either you can use both.