Somali League membership made Hussen the most visible Somali official in town

Evidence

The central command of the signal squadron was headed by an arrogant Colonel Shaw who apparently knew about Hussen’s earlier complaints about Fitzpatrick. Shaw wired a message to Fitzpatrick that Hussen must be immediately sent to Mogadishu to face justice. But Fitzpatrick decided to prosecute Hussen in his court. As time passed Hussen received many visitors from town who supported him, since he was the most visible Somali in the administration, and as most people knew, he was the only official member of the SYL in town. Hussen had earned a lot of credit with people because he often sent messages for individual Somalis, including merchants who wanted to know the price of commodities in Mogadishu. — Abdi Ismail Samatar, Africa’s First Democrats, 206