The body of King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV has returned to Uganda, setting off nine days of official mourning for the Tooro Kingdom and an open disagreement over who will take the throne.
Family, government officials and mourners met the casket at Entebbe Airport on Friday. It was draped in both the Tooro Kingdom flag and Uganda’s national flag, with a portrait of the king placed at the front. President Yoweri Museveni was among those who paid respects and laid a wreath.
King Oyo died in the United States last week at age 34 after treatment for an aggressive cancer. Guinness World Records listed him as the world’s youngest reigning monarch. He came to the throne at age 3 in 1995 and was formally crowned at 18 in 2010. He ruled more than two million people in Tooro, a traditional kingdom in western Uganda founded in the early 1800s.
From the airport, his body was taken by military helicopter to Kyegegwa, then by road to the royal palace at Karuziika in Fort Portal. It will lie in state there through the mourning period. The public can visit, and evening prayers will be held. Burial is set for next Saturday, the date he had planned to mark the anniversary of his coronation with the annual Empango celebrations.
Uganda’s parliament held a special tribute on Thursday. MPs described Oyo as a modernizing king who pushed for education, health services and youth opportunities, and for HIV and AIDS awareness. Prime Minister Robinah Nabbanja called him “a symbol of unity.”
But his death has also triggered questions about succession. The king was not officially married. Tooro Kingdom Prime Minister Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire Akiiki said Oyo had a young son whose identity would be announced later in line with custom, and that the king had asked officials to keep his illness private because he expected to recover.
That account was challenged by Charles Kamurasi, head of the Babiito royal clan from which Tooro kings are chosen. He said he knew nothing about a child. Other clan members also said they were unaware, and criticized Akiiki for speaking publicly about the heir.
“Words spoken in moments of grief can deepen divisions that may take years to repair,” Akiiki said Friday, asking elders to resolve the matter privately.
The government has stepped in to calm speculation. Culture Minister Henry Tumukunde urged Ugandans to rely only on official updates from the government and the kingdom, and said any dispute would be handled under the law governing traditional leaders. “The whole world is watching how Uganda mourns its king,” he said.
Uganda is a republic, but its traditional kingdoms retain strong cultural influence. National flags will fly at half-mast for three days around the funeral.
A church service will be held before a traditional procession carries the king to the Karambi Royal Tombs. Burial is expected by 2:00 p.m. local time, in keeping with Tooro tradition that kings are not buried in the evening.
