The name of Major General (Retired) Hussein Ali will go down in history as one of the finest civilian leaders in military history.
In 2004, when former president Mwai Kibaki appointed him Commissioner of the Kenya Police, he rose to prominence.
The major general who resigned after 40 years of service said that the post-election violence in 2007 and 2008 was the defining moment of his career.
When the International Criminal Court indicted six Kenyans for crimes against humanity, Ali was one of them (ICC). Uhuru Kenyatta, the former president of Kenya who is now in retirement, and his successor William Ruto are both featured on it.
With Ali’s retirement from the police force in 2009, President Mwai Kibaki appointed him Postmaster General.
Near the end of his term as Postmaster General, Ali built a sprawling residence in Karen that cost over Ksh200 million.
The three-acre estate with the fifty-meter driveway occupied twenty thousand square feet of space. Two identical cottages face each other opposite from the main house; they are the servants’ quarters.
The seven-bedroom estate also has a prayer room, two main-floor living areas, two sets of stairs-accessible walk-in closets, a number of entertainment rooms, and a pool.
There are multiple bedrooms and a living area on the upper floor, making it ideal for a family. The mansion was listed as one of Nairobi’s priciest homes by multiple sources that year.
The home was finally finished and put up for sale in 2011. However, would-be buyers were cash-strapped at the time and couldn’t afford the asking price.
A director at the real estate firm that was supposed to sell the house says the retired general was displeased with the asking price, causing the firm to reevaluate selling the mansion at that price.
According to Knight Frank, the price of a mansion in the Karen area ranges from Ksh50 million to Ksh80 million.
A director was quoted as saying in a previous interview with Business Daily, “That house is not up for sale anymore, he (Major Gen Ali) was not content with the offers, and I think he would desire to reside in there.”
