By Samuel Olusegun Precious
A bitter succession dispute has erupted in Uganda’s Tooro Kingdom following the death of King Oyo Nyimba, with royal clan elders selecting a 56-year-old television news presenter as his successor just days before the late monarch’s burial.
The elders named Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma, an anchor and editor with Uganda Broadcasting Corporation (UBC), as the next monarch, a decision that has been strongly rejected by King Oyo’s immediate family.
The dispute centres on competing claims over who should inherit the throne under Tooro customary tradition.
Princess Ruth Komuntale, the late king’s sister, and the Queen Mother maintain that King Oyo left a will naming his young son as the rightful heir.
However, representatives of the royal clans have disputed that claim, arguing that the child was not formally presented to the elders in accordance with Tooro tradition.
The disagreement has emerged as the kingdom prepares for King Oyo’s burial, turning the succession into a major dispute between the late monarch’s immediate family and the traditional clan leadership.
King Oyo became widely known after ascending the Tooro throne at the age of three, making him the world’s youngest reigning monarch at the time.
The competing positions have left the question of who should succeed him unresolved, with the royal family and clan representatives maintaining opposing interpretations of the kingdom’s succession tradition.
