The final send-off of the late Tooro King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV is expected to cost at least Shs1.724 billion before Value Added Tax (VAT), as the kingdom and government step up preparations for the burial of the monarch who died last week aged 34.
The proposed event-management budget, dated August 29, 2026 and submitted to the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development, puts the direct event costs at Shs1.59675 billion, with a further Shs127.74 million representing an eight per cent event-management fee.
The budget also provides for 18 per cent VAT, meaning the eventual bill will rise above the Shs1.7 billion pre-tax figure.
The expenditure covers activities at several key locations associated with the King’s final journey, including the airport reception, Buziga Royal Palace, Karambi Royal Tombs, Kabarole Church and Karuziika Royal Palace.
At Karambi, the traditional burial ground of Tooro kings, the proposed expenditure includes Shs60 million for a 30-metre by 70-metre dome tent and Shs30 million for VIP-area floor boarding.
Karuziika Royal Palace, meanwhile, is expected to host some of the biggest activities during the mourning period, with the budget providing for tents, a VVIP over-deck terrace, LED screens, generators, public-address systems, decoration, chairs and other logistical requirements.
The cost comes as Tooro prepares for what is expected to be one of the biggest royal funerals in the kingdom’s modern history.
President Museveni has already granted King Oyo an official burial and directed that national flags be flown at half-mast for three days in honour of the late monarch. The government said the National Organising Committee would work with Tooro Kingdom officials and ministers from the region to organise a befitting send-off.
Condolences
As preparations intensify, the kingdom has also put in place measures to ensure that financial contributions towards the funeral and succession arrangements are properly accounted for.
Fr Dr Charles Oyo, the chief spokesperson for the send-off committee, urged members of the public, friends of the kingdom and well-wishers to channel all financial contributions through the official kingdom account.
“In the interest of accountability, all condolence funds and financial contributions intended to support the official funeral and succession arrangements shall be channelled through the official Tooro Kingdom Palace account in the name of Tooro Kingdom Palace account in Stanbic Bank, Fort Portal Branch on 90300028901924,” Fr Oyo said.
He said the signatories to the account are Dr Richard Rwabuhinga, Harriet Nyakake and Musuuga Charles Kamurasi.
The move is intended to bring transparency to the handling of funds at a time when the kingdom is undertaking expensive funeral rites while simultaneously preparing for the succession of the late king.
Nine Days Of Mourning
Tooro has entered a period of traditional mourning following King Oyo’s death in the United States on Thursday.
The kingdom’s cultural authorities have clarified that the official nine-day mourning period, known as okugaragara, will run after the King’s body arrives at Karuziika Palace. The body is expected to be received at Entebbe International Airport before being transported to Tooro.
The mourning period is deeply rooted in Tooro’s royal traditions.
Following the announcement of the King’s death, royal symbols were subjected to traditional rites, including the turning upside down of the royal drum and other instruments of power. The Tooro anthem has also been suspended during the mourning period.
These rituals symbolise the fact that the kingdom is temporarily without a reigning monarch.
The burial will culminate at Karambi Royal Tombs, where generations of Tooro kings have been laid to rest.
The preparations are being coordinated under the authority of Omujwera Musuuga Charles Kamurasi, the head of the Babiito royal clan and a key custodian of Tooro’s royal traditions.
Kamurasi has played a central role in the Tooro monarchy for decades. He was among the elders who participated in the enthronement of King Oyo in 1995, when the young prince was only three years old.
Succession Battle
Even as the funeral preparations continue, attention has shifted to the question of who will occupy the Tooro throne.
There have been conflicting accounts over whether King Oyo left a biological son who could automatically become his successor.
While Tooro Prime Minister Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire Akiiki and President Museveni have referred to the existence of a young heir, Kamurasi has said the Babiito royal clan has not been formally informed of such a child.
“The King had no child. I don’t know about it because we have never been told that,” Kamurasi said. The Musuuga said the succession question belongs to the royal clan and would be settled according to Babiito customs.
“What will happen now is that we shall go back to the Rukidi lineage and those issues have to be sorted out by the clan,” he said.
According to Kamurasi, the search would focus on princes within the lineage of the late King George Rukidi III, King Oyo’s grandfather.
“The new king will be identified from the existing princes. As members of the royal clan, we shall have to sit and sort out that issue,” he said.
A 21-member committee of Babiito elders has been established to handle the succession process. The committee is expected to identify the successor, formally communicate the decision to the relevant stakeholders and prepare the traditional rituals leading to the installation of the new monarch.
How The New King Will Be Installed
Tooro’s succession process is not simply a political appointment. It is a cultural process overseen by the Babiito royal clan under the custodianship of the Musuuga.
The death of a king traditionally creates a period during which royal symbols remain inverted until a new monarch is installed. Kamurasi explained this tradition while recalling King Oyo’s own enthronement in 1995.
“When a king dies, the royal regalia are turned upside down, including the royal drum, royal stool, and other instruments of power. It is only when a new king ascends the throne that they are placed upright,” he said.
The eventual successor will therefore undergo a series of rituals before being formally recognised as Omukama.
King Oyo’s own installation provides a glimpse into what lies ahead. After his father’s death in August 1995, a nine-day mourning period was observed before preparations began for the young prince’s enthronement.
On the night before his coronation, Oyo was carried from his father’s home to Karuziika Palace. At the palace entrance, he underwent a traditional resistance ritual before entering the royal compound.
He then touched an axe nine times and struck the royal drum nine times, symbolically binding himself to the ancestral line of Tooro kings. He was subsequently taken through additional rituals before being seated on the royal stool and eventually crowned.
Because Oyo was only three, regents governed the kingdom until he reached adulthood. In 2010, at the age of 18, he assumed full administrative responsibilities.
A Kingdom At A Turning Point
King Oyo’s death has therefore created a rare moment in Tooro’s modern history.
The kingdom is simultaneously preparing an elaborate royal funeral, managing millions of shillings in contributions and government support, observing ancient mourning rituals and beginning the delicate process of identifying a new monarch.
For a kingdom that restored its traditional institution in 1993, Oyo’s reign was a defining chapter. He ascended the throne in 1995 at just three years old and became one of the world’s youngest monarchs.
He eventually ruled for more than three decades, growing from a child king under regency into an adult cultural leader.
Now, as Tooro prepares to lay him to rest at Karambi, the kingdom faces the equally historic task of determining who will inherit the throne.
The funeral may cost more than Shs1.7 billion, but the succession that follows will determine the direction of the Tooro monarchy for another generation.
Author Profile
- Charles Gazza Kodili is a seasoned journalist with over 20 years of experience in the media industry. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Mass Communication. He’s currently the Chief Editor at the Investigator.
Charles can also be reached via; Tel: +256 774 108978
Email: [email protected]
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