The late Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV has been lasid to rest this evening at Karambi Royal Tombs, Fort Portal City and accorded a seven-gun salute amidst alleged confusion within the royal tombs.
Oyo’s burial saw the announcement of Edward Kijanangoma Rukidi Nyabongo as the new King of Tooro.
The head of the Babiito clan, Omusuuga Charles Kamurasi maintained Kijanangoma’s election on Saturday during the funeral service of the late Oyo.
“I wish to inform Tooro and Uganda at large that Tooro has a new king. The council of the Babiito sat and elected Edward Rukidi Nyabwongo I,” Musuuga said.
He added, “Whatever we’ve done is in accordance with Ugandan law, and we have put our Tooro culture and norms into consideration. Let’s all maintain unity and always remember our culture. God is there”.
Following Oyo’s last funeral service at St. John’s Cathedral in Fort Portal, his body was taken to Karambi Royal Tombs, his final resting place.
However according to reports, chaos emerged within the royal tombs grounds after Queen Mother Best Kemigisha allegedlly tried to interfere with the burial process.
“King Oyo has been buried finally after the intervention of Pres Museveni, through Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa and Minister Gen Tumukunde. But even then, this was done under heavy deployment of UPDF soldiers, and locking Queen Mother and Princess Komuntale inside the vehicle. King Oyo was given a 7 gun salute” NBS journalist Canary Mugume posted on his x account.
Veteran journalist Andrew Mwenda alleged that the Queen mother had earlier on in the morning, refused Oyo’s body from leaving the palace and it only took the intervention of the UPDF to get the body to church.
“As I post this tweet, she has refused to release the body for burial at the royal tombs. Under our customs, a king is supposed to be buried not later than 3pm. It is now almost 5pm and the mourners are all officials at the burial are stuck” he said.
He added, “The only way they can get the body of the king and bury it is for the state to send in the army and forceful grab the body from her. The optics would be terrible”.
The reports followed an emotionally charged day for the Tooro royal family, with Kemigisa having earlier delivered a deeply emotional tribute to her son during the funeral service.
Despite the alleged commotion within the tombs, which couldn’t be independently verified by the time of this publication, the burial of Omukama Oyo proceeded on.
Sources intimated that the newly appointed Omukama of Tooro, King Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I, completed his first traditional ritual at the royal burial ground, marking another step at his installation as the next Tooro King following hus cousin Oyo’s burial.
