Good morning, Mr. Mach, congratulations on your success! Becoming one of 21 Czech MEPs is not only great success but it will surely be time-consuming as well. Do you intend to move to Brussels? I honestly do not want to move to Brussels. I am just going to attend meetings of the European Parliament. I consider it extremely important that a person who is supposed to represent interests of people living in the Czech Republic also stays in the Czech Republic. Moreover, I also believe that we should keep our own civilian jobs so as not to become dependent on the Parliamentary office work and to be able to solve common problems that our people have to deal with. However, I am going to give up teaching at the other school as it would be impossible for me to manage all my tasks.
Judging from the agenda of the Party of Free Citizens, it is obvious that you support the establishment of private university school system and the tuition payment at universities. This is often considered a controversial topic. Do your electors share the same opinion? It is not fair that for instance a tax-paying truck driver "pays" other people their study of economy at a state school. This truck driver also has to pay for his own driving licence or it is paid by his employer. The agenda of the Party of Free Citizens includes cancellation of the income tax. This way people can keep their money to pay for what they consider appropriate. At the same time, however, the system of accreditation should be reformed so that schools can more freely offer their fields of study. Nowadays, students of marketing often learn some macroeconomic models to no purpose. My wish is that students will be concerned more about their knowledge than their title in the future.
Do you believe that university education is a necessary condition to achieve success in today´s world? It is definitely not a condition. As a teacher, I am going to speak against my interests now. But in my opinion, it is one of the biggest mistakes when the European Union fixes a quota specifying that nearly 50% of people should have a university degree. A lot of craftsmen and artists are successful without university education. Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates did not finish their studies either. On the other hand, Zuckerberg would hardly have come up with the idea for facebook if he had not started his studies. However, lots of students of Master´s degree could settle for Bachelor´s degree and lots of bachelors could be content with business academy. If everyone studied a university, it would be a huge waste! On the other hand, the university gives people a huge value and multiplies their investments; it provides them with lots of knowledge, experience and contacts. However, there should be more rationality in our university school system.
At the University of Finance and Administration you teach Micro-economy and Macro-economy, both in English. Do you plan to offer these lectures next year when you are committed to Brussels? Yes, I intend to continue my lectures. I am about to complete an English textbook and it is my ambition to produce a textbook that reads easily to help students understand the economy theory.
The subjects you teach are the most difficult ones. Moreover, you teach them in English. How do the students cope with the demands of these subjects? I feel that the students who choose English fields cope with the study more easily that those who study in Czech. I have the opportunity to compare the results of both groups at state examinations.
You have been working for our university for some time now. Is there anything you would like to highlight or change? I appreciate the decision to separate the state examination in economy from other subjects. I believe this system works better for teachers and students. I like the idea of holding social events by your school. I and my girlfriend Andrea attended your ball where we could meet a number of your graduates. If I could change one thing, I might leave out a few theoretical subjects in Czech master´s economy.
Congratulations again on your extraordinary success and thank you for the interview.
