Foreign corporations courted Somali ministers with lucrative corrupt offers

Evidence

But such a perspective was not limited to US representatives. A few days later, the Italian petroleum company Agip made a similar offer. The company director came to Hussen and asked if the company could get permission from the Public Lands Department to build a gasoline station at a strategic intersection of the major Mogadishu-Afgoi road. Agip would build the station, but Hussen, as their titular agent, would share in the profits. However, to consummate the deal, Agip needed the minister to use his authority to secure the permit from the Department of Public Lands, a unit of his ministry. This was a lucrative offer, but the cost was even greater— severe damage to the integrity of his office and the professional judgment of his staff—and Hussen refused. Agip’s director was dismayed by the rejection but took the offer to the minister of Finance who jumped on the opportunity. — Abdi Ismail Samatar, Africa’s First Democrats, 725

Categorization

• QUESTION: Which finance minister accepted the Agip station deal, and how did that shape later corruption norms?