FORT PORTAL — Tooro Kingdom Prime Minister Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire Akiiki has been retained in office by the newly installed King Edward Rukiidi Nyabongo I and outlined five priorities for his administration.
Rwomiire announced his retention in a statement on Monday, saying he was “deeply humbled and honoured” by the King’s decision and would regard the appointment as a renewed call to serve the monarch and the people of Tooro.
He said he had met King Edward and presented priorities that he believes should guide the new administration, which the King agreed to and instructed him to implement.
The first priority is addressing outstanding staff arrears at Muchwa, which Rwomiire said had accumulated over several years.
“Our staff keep the Kingdom functioning, and we must find a sustainable way of dealing with these obligations while putting better systems in place to prevent such problems from recurring,” he said.
The Prime Minister also identified strengthening the Kingdom’s administrative systems and structures as a priority.
He said the Kingdom needed clear policies, procedures and systems to guide its operations, while ensuring that its cultural norms, traditions and established ways of working are understood and respected.
Rwomiire’s third priority is completing youth empowerment incubation hubs, which he said are intended to provide opportunities in skills development, enterprise, agriculture and other economic activities.
He said King Edward had agreed that completing the hubs should be an immediate priority and planned to visit and inaugurate them during his forthcoming Masaza visits.
The Prime Minister said the Masaza visits would also be used to strengthen the connection between the King and his subjects.
“His Majesty must be able to visit his people, meet them in their communities, listen to their concerns and understand their needs and aspirations,” he said.
Rwomiire said his administration would organise and support the visits while also engaging the Ministry of Gender on ways to strengthen and facilitate the work of the Masaza, including transport and welfare.
The fifth priority focuses on youth and the productive use of Kingdom land.
Rwomiire said the Kingdom would explore, subject to legal advice and safeguards, arrangements through which young people could organise themselves into associations and access Kingdom land through appropriate lease agreements for productive agriculture.
He said the proposal could create employment and income, increase agricultural production and help protect Kingdom land from encroachment and misuse.
“If we organise our youth well, these associations can also become platforms for other areas of development beyond agriculture,” he said.
Rwomiire also paid tribute to the late King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, whose death in August brought an end to his reign.
He said Oyo’s death had closed “an important chapter” in Tooro’s history but should not end the work he had started.
“I believe we now have an opportunity to honour his memory by continuing his legacy, completing the work he started and building a stronger, more united and more prosperous Tooro,” Rwomiire said.
King Edward was installed as the new Omukama of Tooro on September 29 following the death and burial of King Oyo.
Rwomiire’s retention gives continuity to the Kingdom’s administration as the new monarch begins his reign, while his proposed priorities place staff welfare, administrative reform, youth employment, agriculture and stronger engagement with communities at the centre of the new administration.
