FORT PORTAL — Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I has been crowned the new Omukama of Tooro Kingdom, succeeding his cousin, Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, whose death on August 27 triggered a succession dispute within the royal family.
Nyabongo I, 56, was formally enthroned at Karuziika Royal Palace in Fort Portal on Tuesday, September 29, after a series of traditional rituals that culminated in his entry into the palace and assumption of the throne.
The coronation was attended by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni as chief guest, alongside cultural leaders, government officials, members of the royal family and thousands of Tooro subjects.
The new king, formerly known as Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma and a former television news anchor, was selected by a 21-member Babiito royal clan succession committee following the death of King Oyo at the age of 34.
The Tooro Supreme Council subsequently endorsed the selection and the government confirmed the September 29 coronation date.
His enthronement followed a night of traditional ceremonies intended to symbolically mark his claim to the throne.
On Monday night, Nyabongo I left Rwengoma Palace and led a procession through Fort Portal towards Karuziika Palace. The four-kilometre midnight walk was accompanied by crowds and reed torches as part of the traditional ascension rituals.
The rituals included a symbolic mock battle at Mugabante Gate and the spearing of a bull before the king entered Karuziika Palace.
He also performed the Okujumura Engoma ritual, striking the royal drum nine times, marking his assumption of the spiritual and administrative leadership of the kingdom.
The rituals were preceded by an Okweeza ceremony at Buhesi Palace in Bunyangabo, where Nyabongo was served milk and coffee beans, according to reports from the kingdom’s coronation activities.
The ceremonies drew large crowds into Fort Portal, with roads and businesses decorated in Tooro colours and traditional performers entertaining residents ahead of the coronation.
Succession dispute
Nyabongo’s accession follows weeks of disagreement over who should succeed King Oyo.
Members of Oyo’s family, including Queen Mother Best Kemigisa, have maintained that the late king left a son who was named as heir in a will. The identity and whereabouts of the alleged heir have not been publicly established.
The Babiito royal clan, however, proceeded with the selection of Nyabongo I, while the Tooro Supreme Council endorsed him as successor.
The Attorney General subsequently said the kingdom could proceed with the coronation because no formal court appeal had been registered against the succession process.
The succession dispute nevertheless remains part of the background to Nyabongo’s accession.
Museveni congratulates new king
President Museveni congratulated Nyabongo I during the coronation and paid tribute to the late King Oyo.
“I want to salute the memory of King Oyo for the wonderful work he did,” Museveni said in a message posted on his official account.
Museveni also recalled receiving a letter from Oyo shortly before his death.
“I was very sad because, a day after he was buried, I was going through my documents and found a letter he had written to me on 15th June 2026, thanking me for a number of things, including the appointment of ministers from Tooro,” he said.
He congratulated Nyabongo and referred to his previous career in television.
“I have been watching him on the news and he is a good newsreader. I am sure he will do a good job.”
Nyabongo’s accession has also received messages of goodwill from other Ugandan cultural institutions.
Buganda Katikkiro Charles Peter Mayiga, speaking on behalf of the Kingdom of Buganda, congratulated the new Omukama and expressed hope for continued relations between the two kingdoms.
“On behalf of the Kingdom of Buganda, and on my own behalf, I extend our best wishes to Rukirabasaija Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma upon his ascendancy unto the throne of Tooro,” Mayiga said.
“We look forward to the unity and prosperity of the Kingdom of Tooro.”
A new reign
Nyabongo I’s coronation formally ends the mourning period following Oyo’s death and begins a new chapter for the Tooro monarchy.
In his first address as king, Nyabongo pledged to promote unity and preserve Tooro’s cultural heritage, while placing emphasis on issues including education, employment and environmental protection.
Traditional kingdoms in Uganda have no constitutional political power, but they retain significant cultural and social influence among their communities. Uganda restored the country’s traditional institutions in 1993 after their abolition under President Milton Obote in 1967.
The coronation therefore marks more than a change of occupant at Karuziika Palace. It closes one of the most closely watched royal transitions in recent Tooro history — but questions surrounding the late Oyo’s reported heir remain part of the kingdom’s unfinished succession story.
