dward Rukidi Kijanangoma has been crowned the new king of Uganda’s Tooro kingdom, marking a dramatic change for a man who spent much of his adult life behind the microphone rather than at the centre of public attention.
The 56-year-old, now known as King Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma Nyabongo I, was a long-serving anchor and editor at Uganda’s state broadcaster. His elevation to the throne has now made him the focus of widespread attention, as his succession has also triggered controversy within the royal family.
Tooro is one of Uganda’s four officially recognised historical kingdoms. For the past 31 years, it was headed by King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, who became known as a ‘boy king’ after ascending the throne as an infant.
Oyo became king in 1995 at the age of three following the death of his father. He was then the world’s youngest monarch and remained on the throne until his death from cancer last month at the age of 34.
A coronation steeped in tradition
Kijanangoma’s coronation was marked by traditional practices that began at midnight.
He took part in various ceremonies and walked about 4km to the official Karuziika royal palace, where he was formally crowned.
Tooro kingdom Information Minister Charles Mwanguhya told the BBC Focus on Africa podcast that a mock fight would follow the coronation to symbolise that kingship does not come easily.
Kijanangoma would then receive a blessing from members of the royal Babiito clan, he said.
But his path to the throne was far from straightforward.
According to tradition, a recognised son of the late king should have succeeded him. Members of the royal family said Oyo had left behind a young son and a will stating that the child should become the next king.
However, the son has never been publicly revealed and was not recognised by the committee of 21 Babiito clan members responsible for choosing the king. The committee eventually selected Kijanangoma.
Oyo was never publicly married, and little is known about his wife or their son.
His mother, Queen Best Kemigisa, argued that the late king’s will should have been respected. The royal succession committee, however, rejected her position and maintained that the selection process had followed Tooro customs and traditions.
The dispute has left Kijanangoma at the centre of a succession row, with Kemigisa and close relatives of the late king unhappy with the outcome.
Dispute over the succession
Kemigisa described Kijanangoma’s selection as the ‘announcement of a second king’ after Oyo’s will had been read to members of the royal family.
‘As a mother, that was extraordinarily painful,’ she said, referring to celebrations for the next king taking place ‘only metres from where my son’s body lay’.
She later said Oyo’s son, who was in the US state of Texas, had been due to return home but could not do so amid what she described as a ‘tense and polarised succession dispute’.
‘No child should be placed in circumstances where returning to his father’s homeland could mean being drawn into hostility and conflict,’ Kemigisa said in a post on X.
Mwanguhya, however, said the son being referred to ‘hasn’t been presented anywhere’, adding that there was growing acceptance that, despite the circumstances, King Oyo had not left a son behind.
While Oyo inherited the crown from his father, Mwanguhya told the BBC that ‘the crown has moved to a different line within the ruling clan’.
Royal palace sources said a king must come from the Babiito clan, specifically the lineage of King George David Matthew Kamurasi Rukidi III.
Kijanangoma and the late King Oyo were cousins. Both were grandsons of Rukidi III, the 11th king, or Omukama, who ruled Tooro from 1928 to 1965.
Kijanangoma was among several people considered for the throne. Another was Prince George Desmond Kamurasi, who plays football for a well-known amateur club in the UK.
According to the succession committee, Kamurasi declined the offer of the throne because of other responsibilities.
From broadcaster to king
After being formally announced as king, Kijanangoma promised that the palace would remain open to the people and said he would focus on unity and development.
‘I ask you for one thing – they have given me this title as king but I cannot work alone, I have to work with you,’ he said.
Uganda’s traditional kings have no formal political authority, but they retain cultural influence and significant loyalty among the communities they lead.
The country has four main kingdoms, with Buganda being the largest and most prominent. It is based in the central region and encompasses the capital, Kampala.
The kingdoms were abolished in 1967 before being restored by the government under President Yoweri Museveni in the early 1990s.
The government said the restoration was intended to promote cultural pride and national unity, although the move has also been interpreted as an effort to appease communities and foster political loyalty.
Amid the succession dispute, the government backed the Babiito clan’s choice of Kijanangoma. Attorney General Sam Mayanja said the Tooro kingdom had been cleared to proceed with the coronation because there had been no formal complaint against him.
The government announced the coronation date, with President Museveni attending the ceremony.
The president’s son and military chief, Muhoozi Kainerugaba, also publicly supported Kijanangoma, posting on X: ‘Long may he reign.’
Kijanangoma’s name itself reflects his royal heritage.
His father, the first Kijanangoma, was born in the year King Rukidi III became king. Rukidi III gave him the name, which means ‘the one who comes with the royal drum’.
The drum of royalty, foretold two generations earlier, has now returned to its bearer.
Kijanangoma was born in 1970 and raised at the family’s home in Kidukuru village in Fort Portal, about 300km from Kampala.
He later left the village to pursue further studies and graduated with a degree in mass communication from Makerere University in 1999.
He went on to build a broadcasting career spanning more than two decades, working both in neighbouring Rwanda and at home with the Uganda Broadcasting Corporation.
The years he spent engaging with the public, interacting with leaders and reporting on national affairs may now serve him in his new role as leader of the community from which he came.
After being named king, Kijanangoma said he would draw on the connections he had built during 21 years as a journalist ‘to get good things for our people’.
His mother, Assimwe Yusta Kijanangoma, believes he is well prepared for the role. She said his upbringing was deeply rooted in tradition.
‘I really raised him with the teachings of the old kingdom of a cane and instructions and scolding. I laugh with him, and other times I scold him,’ she told the BBC.
She added: ‘Eddy is well-mannered, he does not fight, or shout, even when wronged, he says a few words and does not go so much into it.’
She said she was happy for her son, although she acknowledged having mixed emotions as he takes over the throne following the death of what she described as a ‘great man’.
