FORT PORTAL — The succession of the late King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV has become the subject of a growing dispute between his immediate family and the Babiito Royal Succession Committee, days before his burial.
The Babiito committee on Wednesday selected Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma, a 56-year-old UBC news anchor and editor and cousin of the late king, as the next Omukama of Tooro.
The decision has been rejected by Queen Mother Best Kemigisa and Princess Ruth Komuntale, Oyo’s sister, who say the late king’s 2022 will provides for his biological son to succeed him.
King Oyo died on August 27, 2026, aged 34, while receiving cancer treatment in the United States. He ascended the Tooro throne in 1995 at the age of three and became known internationally as the world’s youngest reigning monarch at the time. His burial is scheduled for September 12 at the Karambi Royal Tombs in Fort Portal.
Family challenges succession
In a statement on Thursday, Queen Mother Kemigisa rejected the selection of Kijanangoma, accusing the 21-member succession committee of disregarding the late king’s will and an earlier understanding that succession discussions would be suspended until after his burial.
She said the will was read on Wednesday in the presence of members of the royal family and government officials, including Minister of Gender, Labour and Social Development Maj Gen Henry Tumukunde.
A provision in the document states that if Oyo was survived by a “son lawfully recognized as my biological Son”, he appointed that son as his heir to the Tooro throne, subject to the Institution of Traditional or Cultural Leaders Act, 2011, and Tooro customs and traditions.
Princess Komuntale has similarly maintained that her brother left an heir and questioned the timing of the succession announcement while the royal family was still preparing for his burial.
The identity and status of the purported son have become central to the dispute. Oyo was not publicly known to have married or to have children during his lifetime, although the Tooro prime minister announced after his death that he had left behind a prince who would be identified at an appropriate time. President Yoweri Museveni also said he had been informed by Queen Mother Kemigisa that Oyo had left a young son.
Committee explains rejection of reported heir
Andrew Mwenda, who is connected to the Tooro royal family, has defended the succession committee’s process and disputed claims that it was “self-appointed”.
Mwenda said a general meeting of more than 100 Babiito princes and princesses was held at Karuziika Palace on August 28, a day after Oyo’s death, and selected a 21-member Royal Succession Committee headed by the Omusuuga, Prince Regent or caretaker.
According to Mwenda, the committee began its work on August 31 and considered four candidates: George Desmond Kamurasi, George David Kamurasi, Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma and a boy presented as Oyo’s purported son.
Mwenda said the purported son was presented by Patrick Kawamara, a brother of the Queen Mother who was serving on the committee. He claimed Kawamara could not provide a photograph of the child and did not disclose details about the child’s maternal family.
The committee subsequently removed the purported son from consideration, according to Mwenda.
The committee initially selected George Desmond Kamurasi in a secret ballot, with Kamurasi receiving 15 votes while the other candidates received one vote each, Mwenda said.
He disputed reports that Kamurasi rejected the throne, saying the prince instead asked for time to consult his wife and business partners in London.
Because of what Mwenda described as time constraints, the committee proceeded to the next candidate and selected Kijanangoma.
Dispute over what determines succession
Mwenda has also argued that a king’s biological son does not automatically become heir under Tooro custom, saying questions would have to be resolved about the child’s identity, parentage and the circumstances of his birth.
The position has been challenged by members of the late king’s family and some Babiito royals, who maintain that Oyo’s written wishes should be respected.
The sons of Prince Regent Charles Kamurasi have also publicly disagreed with their father over the succession controversy, arguing that Oyo’s will should take precedence over any previous arrangements concerning the throne.
The disagreement has therefore widened beyond the late king’s immediate family to include members of the Babiito clan itself.
Calls for calm
Tooro Prime Minister Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire Akiiki has called for calm as the competing positions are considered.
He said the will, Tooro customs, applicable law and the institutions responsible for succession should be examined through a credible process rather than through competing public announcements or attempts to establish facts on the ground before Oyo’s burial.
Queen Mother Kemigisa has also appealed for the royal family to be allowed to mourn and bury the late king in peace. She has alleged that the family is effectively under “house arrest” following the deployment of security personnel around the palace and the removal of royal guards.
The Babiito committee, meanwhile, maintains that it followed the customary process in identifying a successor.
With King Oyo’s burial scheduled for Saturday, the dispute leaves Tooro facing an unresolved question over who should succeed the monarch who ruled the kingdom for more than three decades.
The controversy has also placed two sources of authority at the centre of the succession debate: the late king’s written wishes and the traditional authority of the Babiito clan to select an Omukama.
