FORT PORTAL — The Tooro Kingdom’s Royal Succession Committee has selected 36-year-old George Desmond Kamurasi as the proposed successor to the late King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, setting the stage for a new reign in the historic kingdom.
Kamurasi was selected on Friday, September 4, during a meeting of the 21-member Royal Succession Committee held at Fort Motel in Fort Portal City.
According to journalist Andrew Mwenda, who announced the decision, 18 of the 21 committee members attended the meeting, with 15 voting in favour of Kamurasi.
The committee is chaired by Omusuuga Charles Akiiki Kamurasi and was constituted by the Babiito royal clan on August 28 following the death of King Oyo.
The selection, however, is not yet the formal public announcement or installation of a new king.
Mwenda said the Omusuuga had informed him that, according to Tooro custom, the formal announcement to the Babiito clan leaders and the wider public will be made after the burial of King Oyo.
“We now await the Omusuuga to make a formal announcement officially to the Babiito clan leaders,” Mwenda said.
He added that he disclosed the committee’s decision to prevent speculation on social media from creating confusion during the transition.
Kamurasi is a member of the Babiito royal family and the son of the late Prince George Desmond “Jimmy” Mugenyi.
Mwenda said Mugenyi was the younger brother of former Tooro King Patrick David Mathew Olimi Kaboyo II and had been second in line to succeed his brother under succession arrangements associated with their father, the late King George Rukidi III.
Kamurasi is also a cousin of the late King Oyo, placing him within the direct royal lineage that has now been placed at the centre of the succession process.
Succession amid mourning
The decision comes as Tooro remains in a period of mourning for King Oyo, who died in the United States at the age of 34.
His remains arrived back in Uganda on September 4 and were received by President Yoweri Museveni at Entebbe International Airport before being flown to Kyegegwa and transported by road to Fort Portal.
The official mourning period runs until September 12, when King Oyo is scheduled to be buried at the Karambi Royal Tombs. The date also coincides with what would have been the 31st anniversary of his coronation.
The timing of the succession decision has consequently drawn attention because it was made on the same day King Oyo’s remains arrived in his kingdom and the formal mourning period began.
Tooro’s cultural leadership has already set strict protocols for the mourning period, including restrictions on public celebrations, farming and loud music as the kingdom observes traditional rites following the death of a monarch.
However, the succession committee’s selection is being presented as part of the traditional process rather than an immediate change in the public status of the monarchy.
Museveni, Muhoozi reportedly back choice
Mwenda also said he briefed Chief of Defence Forces Gen Muhoozi Kainerugaba and Commander Land Forces Gen Kayanja Muhanga about the committee’s decision.
According to Mwenda, Gen Kainerugaba endorsed Kamurasi’s selection, saying it was consistent with Tooro customs, precedents and succession laws.
Mwenda further said Gen Kainerugaba told him that President Yoweri Museveni supports the committee’s choice.
He said President Museveni had sent a team led by a senior Cabinet minister to Fort Portal to consult key stakeholders on the succession.
“After extensive consultations with all the key stakeholders, the committee was convinced that there is a wide consensus around the succession of Kamurasi,” Mwenda said in his account of the process.
The claims about the President’s position and the consultations were reported by local media based on Mwenda’s statement. As of Saturday, there was no separate public statement from the President’s office confirming the endorsement.
The formal authority to announce the successor remains with the Babiito leadership.
A kingdom between mourning and transition
The succession process follows a period of uncertainty that began with King Oyo’s death.
Oyo ascended the Tooro throne in 1995 at the age of three and became one of the world’s best-known traditional monarchs. He remained king for almost three decades, combining his cultural role with advocacy on issues including youth empowerment, environmental conservation and health.
His death initially raised questions over succession, particularly following statements that he had left an heir. Reports indicated that members of the Babiito clan wanted succession claims to be subjected to the kingdom’s traditional procedures.
The selection of Kamurasi now provides a clear direction from the Royal Succession Committee, although the process will not be considered publicly complete until the Babiito leadership makes the formal announcement.
For now, Tooro faces the unusual moment of mourning one king while preparing for the eventual arrival of another.
King Oyo’s funeral remains the immediate focus, with the kingdom expected to observe the nine-day mourning period before his burial on September 12.
Only after the late king has been laid to rest will the formal announcement of his successor be made, according to the Omusuuga’s position relayed by Mwenda.
