Sam Shahin: We need more tolerance and respect, especially over vaccination

Individuals should be respected, regardless of the choices they make – even on vaccination, writes Sam Shahin in a column for The Advertiser’s Power List.

* Coming Wednesday: The Advertiser’s Power List for 2021 - we profile the 50 most influential South Aussies

On Leadership

We want smart leaders in politics. It is in our collective interest that the smartest of our community aspire to politics as a first choice.

This isn’t quite the case and we ought to interrogate the reasons why. While there are undoubtedly some smart and well-meaning folk in politics now, the political path is not favoured, nor considered, by the mass population.

Representing our community is a high honour, and we ought to ask ourselves why there aren’t more people aspiring to perform that role. We need to appreciate leaders more and acknowledge the challenges and personal sacrifices they make to serve our community. We also need to acknowledge that everyone makes mistakes and be pragmatic about our judgment of a lifetime of service against an error of judgment that some may make. They’re only human.

Politicians, cricketers, religious leaders, business leaders, teachers, doctors, and lawyers have all made unfortunate headlines at some point or another yet we seem surprised every time we read of it again! No one should shy away from scrutiny but we will collectively be better off the better our leaders are, and if we agree here, then the rest is process driven.

The key is a broad representation of community aspirations that can collectively service our society and have the foresight to plan with clarity.

Businessman and race track owner Sam Shahin. Picture: Simon Cross

On Tolerance

We will need to establish how to deal with extreme views in a world that’s adrift into more extreme views.

History has shown that you don’t fight extremism with extremism. You fight it with education and tolerance. You lead by example.

Many countries in Europe (Poland, Germany, Belarus and others), Trumpist US, Africa, and South America have provided recent examples and the trend is clear. I believe we need to get ahead of that curve because I see similar trends in Australia. We must plan and advocate for tolerance in our society. The key is being proactive rather than reactive. We should educate and anticipate, rather than wait till something happens and justify your actions later.

On Health

The Covid-19 pandemic, while not over, should promote our ambition to remain a world leader in the health industry.

We need to be more tolerant of the differing points of view within our society. And when we don’t agree with them, we ought to still respect them. I have had all my vaccinations across about 50 years, including two doses of the Pfizer vaccine, but know of many that haven’t. I do not think less of them, whether I agree with their views or not.

I feel we need to be more tolerant of broad views on vaccinations, the types of vaccinations, and our civil liberties.

On Education

We must be part of the education revolution. Governments are facilitators. They are there to open doors but not to carry the whole load.

If I put my retail cap on, I’d think about the customer and ask: What does a student want, and what does a parent want for their kid?

If you consider that carefully, the riddle is less complex. We want to be providers of world-class education at world-class facilities supported by a world-class system that encourages participation from across the planet.

If we want to be a serious participant in the global student economy, much more focus will be needed. Central to our evolution as a global leader is the amalgamation and consolidation of our three universities. Egos aside, this will be transformative to South Australia’s standing abroad as a global education hub.

Sam Shahin at The Bend race track. Picture: Brad Fleet

On the Economy

Santa will bring more than Christmas prezzies, This time around he’ll bring a few health headaches to a government on the cusp of an election. At the next election, South Australians will likely be faced with a plethora of independent candidates and a likely minority government locking in deals with key independents in order to govern. We can all assume that those deals are being cooked up right now.

This isn’t new in SA though. Our recent history has almost made that the norm rather than the exception. Kudos to the incumbent state government for weathering the Covid storm. The government must be given credit because credit is due. It has led a tough phase of our state’s history, and although the alternative government has not had much opportunity, now is the time to be clear and to outline a vision for an uncertain future. It’s easy to throw stones from opposition; it’s tougher to catch them when governing.

I am not a one-eyed political supporter of any party. I vote for those that convince me that they have the best interest of our state and nation. I have in previous elections voted for one of the major parties, the minor parties, and in some instances, for independents.

Whoever has to deal with the economy post-Covid, they’ll have a big job reconciling how we pay for the admirable and generous way that governments have sustained economies during the Covidmare, and the paradoxical apparently buoyant economy we’ve witnessed over the past 24 months. We all have to pay for it.

Inability to travel, closed borders, an estimated 500,000 Aussie expats coming back over the last two years are some of the reasons behind the overheated house and car market. You feel a correction is not far.

Sam Shahin at The Bend Motorsport Park, Tailem Bend, South Australia. Picture Matt Turner

One of the topics that has to come back on the political agenda is how to procure a larger taxpaying population base, so I feel the migration debate needs to be re-invigorated, and I welcome that. We need more people that will pay more taxes that will pay for the services and infrastructure of our healthily ageing population. Support for local innovation and expertise will be necessary; we have some of the smartest people here in SA who are capable of producing and manufacturing healthcare products, including conventional vaccines, that should be supported.

While on debates that have not had the light of day, I think we need to mature the debate on nuclear energy. The discussion should not be driven by political agendas nor outdated ideologies. We are a smarter and a more mature nation now; we can sustain a robust exploration of the merits of nuclear power.

While on the economy, I feel a special shout out is necessary for the tourism economy that has been battered of late. I do hope we all continue to support our “own” here in SA and continue to enjoy our many hidden treasures within SA. I will single out our largest hidden treasure: Kangaroo Island. I wonder what the cost of a bridge across from Cape Jervis to Penneshaw might cost?! The cost-benefit analysis against say some of the larger proposed projects may make interesting reading. I recently spent a week on the island, and despite having visited on many an occasion in the past, I still find it a fascinating destination on par with any other retreat anywhere in the world.

On the Federation

I think much healing will be necessary to re-glue the arbitrary borders that had existed between the states. I have felt the strength of the federation has been severely undermined and while some may not see it that severe, the best way to test the strength of the federation is to consider an extreme event: let’s assume, say in a decade from now, there is a food shortage around the world and states started hoarding supplies; I would have been more certain that Australia will share its food supplies evenly among its citizens pre the Covid era; the institution of state borders, and the precedent of presidential-like powers to premiers, has significantly eroded the glue of state borders, and the federation. I hope I have read that wrong!

Whatever the case though, I suggest you hold on to your seats ladies and gentlemen; the ride may be a little rough over the next six months or so.

Sam Shahin is managing director of The Bend Motorsport Park and executive director of Peregrine Corporation. However, this column by Dr Shahin is his personal views - not on behalf of any business, including his own.