MUSEVENI “SHIELDED `MURDEROUS` QUEEN MOTHER”… Andrew Mwenda Accuses QM Best Kemigisa Of the 1999 Prince Kijjanangoma Murder, Alleges M7`s Protection Against Prosecution! Tooro Succession Crisis Deepens

Veteran journalist Andrew Mwenda has accused Tooro Queen Mother Best Kemigisha of being behind the 1999 killing of Prince Charles Happy Kijanangoma and alleged that President Yoweri Museveni’s government had shielded her from prosecution.

Mwenda made the allegations in a lengthy post on X, formerly Twitter, as the Tooro Kingdom remained embroiled in a succession dispute following the death and burial of Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV. He accused the Queen Mother of a series of actions which, he said, had harmed the kingdom for more than three decades.

Mwenda alleged that Kemigisha had been responsible for the killing of Prince Kijanangoma, the elder brother of the late King Oyo, and claimed that the State, particularly President Museveni, had shielded her from prosecution.

He also accused Kemigisha of mistreating the former Queen Mother, Kezia Byanjeru, whom he said had been forcibly removed from the palace in 1998 and had later died from injuries sustained during the incident.

The allegations triggered questions about the evidence supporting the claims, with some commentators demanding that Mwenda produce the alleged investigation records and court documents. Mwenda said Batooro had tolerated Kemigisha’s alleged conduct for more than three decades.

“For more than 30 years, Batooro have put up with the greed, intrigues and intransigence of this lady,” he said. “For 30 years we have witnessed the desecration of our most sacred traditions. For 30 years we have seen kingdom land taken and sold by her and all the money pocketed by her,” he alleged.

Oyo burial dispute sparked fresh accusations

Mwenda’s accusations came against the backdrop of disagreements surrounding the handling of King Oyo’s remains and the question of who would succeed him. He claimed that the Queen Mother had refused to allow the late king’s body to leave the palace and had later obstructed its burial at the royal tombs.

“This morning she refused the body of King Oyo to leave the palace. Government had to use the army to get the body to church,” Mwenda wrote. He further alleged that the Queen Mother had refused to release the body for burial, creating a situation in which the State could be forced to intervene. Mwenda claimed that the dispute had become particularly serious because, according to Tooro customs, a king was supposed to be buried before 3pm.

1998 palace dispute

Mwenda then linked the controversy to events involving former Queen Mother Kezia Byanjeru in 1998. He alleged that Kemigisha had ordered Byanjeru’s removal from the palace and claimed that she had been physically carried away by people acting on the Queen Mother’s instructions.

“In 1998 she chased my grandmother, Kezia Byanjeru, 93 years (former queen mother), from the palace, used ruffians who lifted her forcefully and dumped her onto a pickup truck, broke her hip and she died two months later,” Mwenda wrote. He identified Byanjeru as the mother of King Patrick Olimi Kaboyo III and Kemigisha’s mother-in-law. Mwenda said the royal family had endured the incident in silence. “We suffered this humiliation in suppressed silence,” he said.

Mwenda revived 1999 murder allegation

The most serious allegation in Mwenda’s post concerned the death of Prince Kijanangoma in 1999.

Mwenda alleged that Kemigisha had ordered the killing and claimed that an investigation had identified her as the person behind the crime. “In 1999, she ordered the cold-blooded murder of Prince Kijanangoma, elder brother to the new king. The investigation found that she was the architect of this heinous crime,” he alleged.

He further claimed that the government had decided not to prosecute Kemigisha because she had been the Queen Mother of a seven-year-old king at the time. “At the time, the state protected her from criminal prosecution because she was a queen mother raising a seven-year-old king,” he said.

Mwenda also referred to John Katuramu, who had been sentenced to death in connection with the killing. “John Katuramu was prosecuted and sentenced to death for this crime to which he was only an accomplice, according to the investigation,” he wrote.

Mwenda said he supported non-prosecution

Mwenda also said he had supported the alleged decision not to prosecute Kemigisha. He argued that sending her to prison or sentencing her to death would have harmed the kingdom because she had been raising a young king.

“Sending her to jail for life or death would have harmed the kingdom. I fully supported this decision as well reasoned and wise,” he said. The position sparked further debate among people who reacted to his post, particularly because Mwenda had accused Museveni’s government of protecting the Queen Mother while acknowledging that he had supported the alleged decision not to prosecute her.

Dr Faith Nabushawo has challenged Mwenda to produce evidence to support his allegation that Museveni had personally shielded Kemigisha from prosecution. She said an allegation that a sitting President had covered up a murder was too serious to be made without evidence.

“You don’t get to say a President covered up a 1999 murder and then just move on,” Nabushawo wrote. “To say that a sitting President covered up a murder is not a throwaway line,” she added. Nabushawo called on Mwenda to publish the investigation file, court record or other evidence showing that Museveni had blocked prosecution.

“If you have the investigation file, court record or named evidence that Museveni blocked prosecution in the 1999 Kijanangoma case, put it out,” she said. “If you don’t, you are circulating a killing allegation as political content. That is reckless,” Nabushawo added. Daudi Kabanda, meanwhile, appealed for restraint and compassion towards the Queen Mother following the death of King Oyo.

Kabanda quoted Deputy Speaker Thomas Tayebwa’s remarks at the burial, in which Tayebwa had contrasted the loss of a king with the loss suffered by his mother. “We have lost a king whom we shall replace, we have lost a friend whom we shall replace, but Queen mother has lost a son whom she will never replace,” Tayebwa was quoted as saying.

Kabanda said the remarks had been a reminder that the Queen Mother was mourning the loss of her son. “This statement reminds us that while the Kingdom will get another king, The Queen Mother Best Kemigisha has lost her own child,” he said. He called for respect and privacy for the Queen Mother as she mourned. “She deserves to be respected as a mother and allowed to mourn her son in whichever way she chooses. Let us give her grace, respect and privacy in this painful period,” Kabanda said.

Mwenda alleged succession manipulation

Mwenda, however, maintained that the dispute surrounding Oyo’s burial and succession had been part of what he described as a wider pattern of interference in Tooro affairs. He alleged that the Queen Mother had attempted to install her grandnephew on the throne contrary to established customs. He also accused her of forging King Oyo’s will, an allegation that had become part of the wider dispute over the late king’s wishes.

“A few days ago, she tried to get her grand nephew and hoist him onto our throne contrary to established custom. She forged a will of the late Oyo,” Mwenda alleged. He further accused her of manipulating and vilifying members of the kingdom. “She has lied, intrigued, vilified and manipulated the kingdom. And we kept silent,” he wrote.

‘There was a limit’

Mwenda said the Batooro had tolerated what he described as decades of interference but warned that their patience had run out. “We are kind, tolerant and patient but we are not stupid or cowards. There is a limit to how much we can tolerate,” he said.

“Kemigisa cannot continue with these machinations and get away with them. Not anymore! PERIOD!” Mwenda declared.

Succession dispute deepened

The allegations came at a sensitive time for Tooro, following the death of King Oyo at the age of 34. His death had triggered renewed debate over succession, the interpretation of his wishes and the role of members of the royal family in determining the next Omukama. The controversy had also exposed divisions within the royal establishment, with competing positions emerging over the late king’s will and the process for selecting his successor.

Mwenda’s claims about the 1999 killing added another serious dimension to the dispute because they directly accused the Queen Mother of involvement in a historical murder and alleged presidential protection.

Claims remained unproven

The allegations made by Mwenda were serious but remained allegations. He did not provide in his post the investigation file, court record or other documentary evidence to independently establish his claims concerning Kemigisha or Museveni.

Nabushawo’s response therefore put the focus on whether Mwenda could produce the evidence he said existed. If such evidence existed, it could potentially provide a basis for renewed scrutiny of the 1999 case through the appropriate legal institutions.

The controversy consequently moved beyond the current succession dispute and raised questions about whether historical allegations involving the Tooro royal family should be addressed through documented evidence and established legal processes.

For the time being, Mwenda’s accusations added another explosive layer to an already bitter Tooro succession dispute, as the kingdom mourned the death of King Oyo and attempted to navigate divisions within the royal establishment.