{"id":2000125851,"date":"2026-09-13T10:44:01","date_gmt":"2026-09-13T08:44:01","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/?p=2000125851"},"modified":"2026-09-13T10:44:32","modified_gmt":"2026-09-13T08:44:32","slug":"museveni-breaks-silence-on-tooro-kingship-dispute","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/museveni-breaks-silence-on-tooro-kingship-dispute\/","title":{"rendered":"Museveni breaks silence on Tooro kingship dispute"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Museveni said on Saturday that the government would work with whoever emerges as the next king once the succession dispute is resolved, urging the people of Tooro to prioritise unity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWhen the issue of the new king of Batooro is resolved, we shall be happy to work with the new king as we did with His Highness Oyo,\u201d Museveni said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

His remarks were delivered by Uganda\u2019s Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa during King Oyo\u2019s burial service at St John\u2019s Cathedral in Fort Portal.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Royal guards escort the body of the late King Oyo for his burial at the Karambi Royal Tombs, in Fort Portal.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Museveni\u2019s comments came as disagreement continued over the choice of Oyo\u2019s successor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Babiito clan, which oversees the royal succession, declared Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma as the new King of Tooro during the late monarch\u2019s final send-off.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Prince Charles Akiiki Kamurasi, the Musuuga and head of the Babiito Clan, said the selection was made by princes and princesses under his leadership and followed Uganda\u2019s laws, as well as Tooro traditions and customs.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But members of Oyo\u2019s immediate family have rejected the decision.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The Babiito clan has defended its decision to name Kijanangoma as Oyo’s successor.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Princess Ruth Komuntale, Oyo\u2019s sister, said the late king left a will in 2022 naming his young son as heir to the throne. Princess Elizabeth Bagaya, Oyo\u2019s paternal aunt, and Margaret Komubaizi, assistant Batebe of Tooro, have also backed the family\u2019s position, saying consultations over the will had not been completed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The dispute has emerged following Oyo\u2019s death last month at the age of 34 while undergoing cancer treatment in the United States.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Oyo became king at the age of three and was recognised by Guinness World Records as the world\u2019s youngest reigning monarch at the time. He ruled Tooro for more than three decades.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Oyo became king at the age of three.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The kingdom is one of Uganda\u2019s traditional institutions, which were abolished in 1967 and restored in the 1990s under Museveni. The monarchs are recognised as cultural leaders rather than political or administrative authorities.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Museveni said Oyo had maintained a good relationship with the central government by focusing on his cultural responsibilities and supporting development.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe was a good leader of culture that never clashed with the central government because he remained in his lane of culture and mobilising people for development,\u201d Museveni said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt is a big loss. May his soul rest in eternal peace.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Museveni also stressed that Uganda\u2019s cultural leaders are not meant to participate in politics, administration or legislation, but to preserve languages, customs and traditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

He said traditional institutions could also contribute to economic development by promoting wealth creation.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

During Saturday\u2019s burial service, Archbishop of the Church of Uganda Stephen Kazimba Mugalu also appealed for unity, warning that statements made during grief could deepen divisions and undermine Oyo\u2019s legacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Babiito clan has defended its decision to name Kijanangoma, with its head saying the succession process followed Tooro\u2019s culture and traditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Museveni said the priority should now be finding a peaceful solution that preserves unity among the Batooro.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI appeal to the Batooro to use peaceful and legal means to resolve this matter and also look for maximum unity instead of division,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
The dispute has emerged following Oyo\u2019s death last month at the age of 34 while undergoing cancer treatment in the United States.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni has called for a peaceful and lawful resolution to the dispute over the succession of the late King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV of Tooro.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":131,"featured_media":2000125852,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[48],"tags":[151,69],"byline":[192],"hashtag":[],"class_list":["post-2000125851","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-politics-48","tag-editors-choice","tag-homehighlights","byline-wycliffe-nyamasege"],"bylines":[{"id":192,"name":"Wycliffe Nyamasege","slug":"wycliffe-nyamasege","description":"","image":{"id":2000122456,"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/08\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-14-at-11.58.47-AM.jpeg","title":"WhatsApp Image 2026-08-14 at 11.58.47 AM","mime_type":"image\/jpeg"},"user_id":131}],"contributors":[{"id":192,"name":"Wycliffe Nyamasege","slug":"wycliffe-nyamasege","description":"","image":{"id":2000122456,"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/08\/WhatsApp-Image-2026-08-14-at-11.58.47-AM.jpeg","title":"WhatsApp Image 2026-08-14 at 11.58.47 AM","mime_type":"image\/jpeg"},"user_id":131}],"featured_image":{"id":2000125852,"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/09\/5321a210-a84c-11f1-b1d1-d7cca3b85b1e.jpg-1.jpg","alt":"Museveni breaks silence on Tooro kingship dispute","caption":"Museveni breaks silence on Tooro kingship dispute","mime_type":"image\/jpeg","width":1024,"height":575,"sizes":{"thumbnail":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/09\/5321a210-a84c-11f1-b1d1-d7cca3b85b1e.jpg-1.jpg","width":1024,"height":575},"medium":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/09\/5321a210-a84c-11f1-b1d1-d7cca3b85b1e.jpg-1.jpg","width":1024,"height":575},"medium_large":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/09\/5321a210-a84c-11f1-b1d1-d7cca3b85b1e.jpg-1.jpg","width":1024,"height":575},"large":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/09\/5321a210-a84c-11f1-b1d1-d7cca3b85b1e.jpg-1.jpg","width":1024,"height":575},"full":{"url":"https:\/\/cdn.igihe.com\/en\/2026\/09\/5321a210-a84c-11f1-b1d1-d7cca3b85b1e.jpg-1.jpg","width":1024,"height":575}}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000125851","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/131"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2000125851"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000125851\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2000125858,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2000125851\/revisions\/2000125858"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2000125852"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2000125851"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2000125851"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2000125851"},{"taxonomy":"byline","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/byline?post=2000125851"},{"taxonomy":"hashtag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/hashtag?post=2000125851"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}