Media release: Free enterprise central to flourishing of the youth, FMF panellists say

Free enterprise central to flourishing of the youth, FMF panellists say

On 14 June, the Free Market Foundation (FMF) hosted a panel discussion on the topic, “Free the youth: Why liberty matters for young South Africans”. Through spirited debate, the panellists ultimately agreed that freedom of enterprise – respecting the property rights and free choices made by South Africans – is the key to unlocking a prosperous future for the youth.

The panellists were legal and competition policy expert Zakhele Mthembu, finance and management consultant Philasande Shongwe, and market analyst Bheki Mahlobo. They spoke in their personal capacities.

Mthembu explained how, when he was younger, he was influenced by black consciousness which in turn is closely associated with radical leftism. However, when he came across the work of Thomas Sowell, Walter Williams, and ultimately Murray Rothbard, he discovered that individual liberty allowed people to “enfranchise themselves” through their own efforts. Coercively redistributing resources generated by productive economic actors entails deleterious results.

Shongwe, in turn, explained that the ravages of the Apartheid system led him down the intellectual path of Marxism. But when he, too, discovered Sowell’s – American economist who grew up at the height of the Great Depression in the Jim Crow south, as a black man – and Friedrich Hayek’s work on the decentralised nature of knowledge, he irresistibly went down the path of appreciating the importance of free enterprise.

Mahlobo, recounting his journey to understanding how the free-market system leads to prosperity, noted that it began with the realisation of the importance of the individual. Many South Africans do not fully appreciate their own potential and unique abilities, and default to groupthink, he said. The so-called ‘Austrian’ school of economics, with its insights into the economic role of individuals, and his work with the Institute of Race Relations – a close friend of the FMF – helped Mahlobo understand that undue interference by the government in economic affairs is disastrous for all South Africans.

Respect for the liberty of the individual should not be confused with an anti-community sentiment, the panel agreed. Far from it, communities can only thrive when they are voluntarily constituted by their members. In fact, community action is the best hope South Africa has for overcoming many of its most pressing problems, given the incompetence and incapacity of the state.

Aside from general respect for free enterprise, the panellists had shared insights into questions of governance, ideology, and personal responsibility.

In response to a question from the audience, Mthembu noted that, “If you want things to change, the ideas [that underly policy] themselves must change.” Mthembu continued, “You cannot say you want to solve a problem […] by doing more of what we currently have. [Instead,] try something different that works.”

As to the old ideas keeping South Africa back, and tolerance for the new ideas of freedom and enterprise that must take root, Mahlobo noted his concern with South Africa’s university culture.

“You need to look at universities particularly. I think these ideas, these very dangerous ideas, are festered within South African universities. They emanate, of course, from the West, but they’ve also gained traction in our country. They’ve made our youth less tolerant towards the opposing view [of freedom and enterprise]. I can’t recall how many lectures I’ve had that favour Marxism – and it can only be academia that believes in such stuff. I think there really needs to be a sincere challenging of South African universities intellectually, on university squares, so that we can have an opposing view, and the students can hear the other side as well.”

Shongwe explained that engaging in the political process, while important, might provide false promise to many who inadvertently outsource their personal responsibility to government. He elaborated:

“The harder job for us to do is to convince people that voting and changing the political party is not the be-all and end-all. I have a sense here that people are saying, ‘Okay look, I can understand and see that things are dysfunctional, yes. So, what then is the solution? To just change the authority that is overseeing all of this!’ And I don’t think that’s quite the right solution. I think it’s part of the solution, but I think the real empowerment of the individual is recognising that you are your own saviour, and that it is not coming to come from [an external source] – you need to do things yourself.”

Concluding the discussion, FMF CEO David Ansara, said, “I am greatly encouraged by the ideas that have been expressed here this evening, and I hope that many more people will be attracted to your thinking. That is the purpose of the Free Market Foundation – we are not just a policy think-tank [but we are also] engaged in this intellectual debate”.

Ends.