Introduction
Before we go on we need to understand the meaning
of this world political economy, with
my best knowledge it has come to our
notice that there is no general acceptable definition, of political economy
because many scholars in political science has come up with different ideals or point of views
Political economy studies the basis of the
development of societies. This centers on the production of material wealth and
the mode of production, that is, it studies production and the basis of society
from the point of view of the economic relations between people in the
production process.
In the views of Lenin, political economy deals not just
with production, but the social relations of men in production and the social
system of production.
The subject-matter of political economy is
therefore, the production (economic) relations between people, the relationship
of various social classes to political power and the interplay of politics and
economy in the determination of power relations within the comity of nations.
These includes:-
i. The forms of ownership of the means of
production;
ii. The position of the various classes and social
groups in production and their interrelations;
iii. The forms and socio-political implications of
the distribution of material wealth; and
iv. The interplay of politics and economy in the
international division of labour and exchange
From this, it is obvious that political economy is
the science of the development of socio-production, that is, economic relations
between people. It clarifies the laws governing production, distribution,
exchange and consumption of the material wealth in human society at various
stages of its development. Political economy therefore takes to account the
relationship between the productive forces and relations of production.
Put slightly differently, political economy is a
class, partisan science dealing with aspects of the economic interrelations
between individuals, social classes or nations with specific focus on the vital
aspects of production, distribution and consumption of wealth. It is a
historical science, which shows how society develops from lower to higher
stages and how the entire course of historical development prepares the
objective necessity of the triumph of the communist mode of production.
Over the years, intellectual curiosity have emerged
on issues like the inevitability or otherwise of class struggles. Similarly,
competing explanations have emerged on the causes of third world dependency as
well as the actual role of Multinational corporations or International
Financial Institutions in the functioning of the global and national economies.
These and more are some of the issues that bother the political economist.
It
is interesting to note that answers to these questions have over the centuries,
provoked intellectual confrontations between scholars of various ideological
leanings.
For instance, political economist of the Marxian
tradition, argue that bourgeoisie economists were able to analyze reality more
or less objectively while the bourgeoisie was still a rising class, and the
development of capitalism was in the interest of social development. However,
with the emergence of the working class consciousness as a counter orientation
to continued exploitation of labour, bourgeois orientations and domination have
steadily been called to question. The apparent clash of ideologies has led to
the evolution of a truly scientific basis for political economy through the
works of such scholars like Marx, Engel and Lenin
Now let go on and explain the meaning of classical
theory
Classical theory
This is concerned mainly with the removal of
inhibitions to expansion of capital in the productive process. The main
argument is that the market forces of demand and supply should be the major
determinants of the production process. Here, the intervention of the
government in economic activities is rejected. Rather, the state should focus
on its primary function of maintenance of law and order. Classical political
economy has otherwise been referred to as laissez faire political
economy because of its emphasis on free enterprise.
The
classical approach to political economy argues against the utility of
restriction in international trade. It advocates for the abolition of trade restriction
such as import and export duties embargo. It extols policies initiatives, which
favour deregulation, privatization and commercialization. The western notion of
globalization, which place emphasis on trade and financial liberalization, fall
within this category. This school principally contends that the price mechanism
contains powerful equilibrating forces that will keep the economy near full
employment without any government intervention; consequently, there is little
involuntary unemployment. (Samuelson and Nordhaus 2002: 664) Intellectual
precursors of the classical political economy include Adam Smith, David
Richardo, and Thomas Malthus.
Criticism
on Classical theory
Scholars of Marxian orientation conceive the
classical orientation to political economy as vulgar: Karl Marx as the
main proponent of the approach assumed a radical posture in his interpretation
of the economic process. The Marxian interpretation of history places emphasis
on social classes, productive forces and the social relationship of production.
He maintains that the economy is the substructure upon which other substructure
and overall superstructural edifice of society revolves.
Using his logic of historical determinism and
dialectical materialism, Marx established the evidence of antagonistic
contradiction in every economic epoch from slavery to capitalism and as such
the existence of class struggle in each epoch.
The centerpiece of Marx work is an incisive
analysis of the strengths and weaknesses of capitalism.
Marx argued that all commodity value is determined
by labour content- both the direct labour and indirect labour embodied in
capital equipment. For example, the value of a shirt comes from the efforts of
textile workers put together plus the value of the person who made the looms.
By imputing all the values of output to labour, Marx attempted to show that
profits- the part of output that is produced by workers but received by
capitalists- amount to unearned income.
It is the opinion of Marx that the injustice of
capitalist receiving unearned income justifies transferring the ownership of
factories and other means of production from capitalists to workers.
The Marxian approach is consistent with socialist
worldview, which accommodates extensive state intervention and control of the
economy of the nation. It is the expectation of scholars of Marxian orientation
that state monopoly of the productive process will make for a better
redistribution income in the society.
CONCLUSION
The above discussion focused on the contending
polemic on the role of state in the functioning of the economy. Evidently,
there exist remarkable discrepancy between the Classical, Marxian and Neo
classical perspectives to political economy. However, despite the observable
variations in orientation, one underlying motivation for each of the
perspectives is that they are driven by the quest for a more effective way of
delivering public goods.
Consequently, whereas the classical perspective
frees the state from all encumbrances associated with state participation in
the economic process, the Marxian perspective emphasizes effective state
intervention in the economic process.
With my best of knowledge I come understand
that The role of the government in
economic life of the state cannot be overemphasized. Beyond the contentions of
the above perspectives lies a central denominator, which is the fact that they
all advocate for efficient and effective delivery of public goods in the
society.
REFERENCES
Anifowoshe, R. and Enemuo,
F. C. (eds.). (1999). Elements of Politics, Lagos: Malthouse.
Okereke, C. N. (2004). Citizen
and State: An Introduction to Political Discourse, Lagos: Elim.
Okereke, C. N. (2004). Citizen
and State: An Introduction to Political Discourse. Lagos: Elim.
Ryndina, M.N.; Chernikov,
G.P and Khudokormov, G.N. (1980). Fundamentals of Political Economy. Moscow:
Progress Publisher.
Samuelson, P. and Nordhaus,
D.W. (2002). Economics. New Delhi: Tata McGraw Hill.
Schaefer, R. T. (2003). Sociology.
New York: McGraw Hills.
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