When I am Queen, everyone will read 祁奚请老 on meritocracy.I paraphrase loosely; original text is below:
Qixi was about to retire and his Prince asked him, who can take over your place?
Qixi recommended Xiehu.
The Prince was surprised. But isn’t Xiehu your enemy?
Qixi: You asked me who is suitable for the position, not whether he is my enemy.
So the Prince promoted Xiehu.Then the prince asked: who should I appoint to [this other position]?
Qixi recommended Qiwu.
The Prince asked: But isn’t Qiwu your son?
Qixi said: you asked me who is suitable, not whether he is my son.This incident is recorded in two different classical history texts, the 左传 and the 吕氏春秋。 The commentaries to both texts praise Qixi: you must neither avoid recommending someone you dislike because of a grudge you bear him nor shy from recommending your own kin for fear of accusations of nepotism. Your duty is to recommend the best man for the job based on their ability.
The correct question to ask is not “Is this man the former PM’s son” but “is this man qualified for his post?” and if the answer is yes I don’t see why it matters whose son he is, or why he shouldn’t do the job in case people suspect favouritism. If the Chinese figured this out in 570BCE why haven’t Western journalists?
晋大夫祁奚老，晋君问曰：“孰可使嗣？”祁奚对曰：“解狐可。”君曰：“非子之仇邪？”对曰：“君问可，非问仇也。”晋遂举解狐。后又问：“孰可以为国尉？”祁奚对曰：“午可也。”君曰：“非子之子耶？”对曰：“君问可，非问子也。”
Best of the Transparent Hummingbird