Hussen’s first cabinet broke with Somali tradition by prioritizing merit over clan balance

Evidence

“[The] first cabinet caused consternation among the old guard, and excitement among young intellectuals. By Somali standards, it is highly unorthodox because the members were chosen without giving due weight to tribal and geographic balance. There was an effort to stress ability and education as criteria for holding office. Five members were from the north as against two northerners in the outgoing Sharmarke cabinet.” — Abdi Ismail Samatar, Africa’s First Democrats, 1410

Categorization

• XREF: Connects to the reader’s overall project on Somali democratic history — the tension between merit-based and clan-based politics recurs throughout.