A succession crisis has erupted in Uganda’s Tooro Kingdom after royal clan elders selected a popular television news presenter as the new monarch, a decision immediately rejected by the late king’s family.
Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma, 56, a presenter and editor with state broadcaster UBC, was named successor to King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, who died last month at the age of 34 while receiving cancer treatment in the United States.
But members of Oyo’s immediate family say the late monarch left a written will naming his young son as heir to the throne.
Princess Ruth Komuntale, Oyo’s sister, said the king had clearly laid out his succession wishes in a document written in 2022.
“My brother did leave behind an heir to the throne, and that was very clearly stated,” she said, accusing those behind Kijanangoma’s selection of creating confusion while the royal family was still mourning.
The late king’s mother, Queen Best Kemigisa, has also appealed for calm, saying security around the royal palace had been tightened and the family’s movements restricted.
She said royal guards had been withdrawn and soldiers deployed around the palace, describing the situation as effectively placing the family under house arrest.
Kemigisa appealed to Uganda’s military leadership and President Yoweri Museveni to allow the family to mourn and bury Oyo before the succession dispute is addressed.
Thousands of mourners are expected to attend the king’s burial on Saturday at the royal tombs near the palace in Fort Portal, western Uganda.
Oyo’s body was returned to Uganda from the United States last week.
The dispute centres on the complex succession traditions of Tooro, one of Uganda’s historic kingdoms.
Unlike constitutional monarchies where succession generally follows a fixed hereditary line, the Tooro monarch is traditionally selected from eligible princes within the Babiito royal dynasty.
The kingdom’s succession committee said clan elders had the customary authority to choose the next Omukama, the traditional title of the Tooro king.
At a press conference in Fort Portal, the committee said Kijanangoma had been selected after “due diligence, consultation and adequate consideration,” with 19 members signing the decision.
Kijanangoma is a cousin of the late king, the son of Prince Christopher Paul Kijanangoma and a grandson of former Tooro monarch George David Rukidi III.
Another royal, UK-based Prince George Desmond Kamurasi, had also reportedly been considered but declined because of other responsibilities.
The date of Kijanangoma’s enthronement has not yet been announced.
The royal family, however, maintains that Oyo’s written instructions should take precedence.
Princess Komuntale said her brother had issued strict directions naming his son as first in line and had also listed alternatives if the child was unable to take the throne.
Her position has been supported by senior royal Princess Elizabeth Bagaaya.
The existence of Oyo’s son was only publicly disclosed following the king’s death, when President Museveni said the queen mother had informed him about the child.
The boy’s identity and age have not been officially revealed, and he had not previously been publicly presented as heir.
Clan representatives argue that this is significant under Tooro custom, saying a royal child must be formally introduced to clan elders and undergo traditional ceremonies before being considered eligible for future leadership.
Uganda’s Culture Minister Henry Tumukunde has said he will oversee efforts to mediate the dispute following consultations with Museveni and Tooro cultural leaders.
King Oyo became monarch as a child and ruled Tooro for more than three decades. He was widely known for promoting education and modernising the public image of the kingdom.
Uganda abolished its traditional kingdoms in 1967 before restoring them in the 1990s under Museveni. The monarchies have no formal political authority but retain major cultural and social influence in their respective regions.
