FORT PORTAL — Across Tooro, the preparations are no longer confined to the palace.
Chiefs are calling meetings. Clans are being mobilised. Communities are being asked to contribute food, livestock and money.
Behind the traditional rituals and royal pageantry is a more immediate task: raising Shs925 million to stage the enthronement of Tooro’s next king.
Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I is due to be enthroned on September 29 at Karuzika Palace in Fort Portal Tourism City, in a ceremony that comes barely a month after the death of King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV.
The late king died in the United States on August 27, aged 34, after a battle with cancer, bringing an abrupt end to a reign that began when he was still a child.
Now the kingdom is preparing for succession.
A kingdom mobilises
With less than two weeks before the ceremony, the organising committees say preparations have entered an intensive phase.
County chiefs across Tooro’s nine counties have been tasked with rallying their subjects and coordinating contributions. The mobilisation is not simply financial. Traditional obligations are also being organised as part of the ceremonies surrounding the new king’s installation.
In Mwenge North and Mwenge South, meetings were scheduled to coordinate contributions that include two cows from each county, according to the organising committee.
Kyaka County Chief William Kamanyire said local leaders were also mobilising food and livestock while encouraging residents to attend preparatory meetings in Fort Portal.
In Ntoroko, county chief Amos Monday said meetings would be held at different levels to rally support for the celebrations.
For the kingdom, the effort reflects the communal character of a royal ceremony whose significance extends beyond the palace itself.
Adolf Musinguzi Oseka, head of the Ababopi clan and Mwenge North County Chief, has urged clans and residents to participate in preparations, while Peter Abigaba Kato said county chiefs had already begun holding coordination meetings.
From mourning to succession
The preparations mark a rapid transition for Tooro.
For weeks, the kingdom’s attention was dominated by the death and burial of King Oyo. His passing left Tooro mourning a monarch who had occupied the throne since childhood.
The focus has now shifted from farewell to succession.
Fr Isaiah Mayombo, chairperson of the Central Organising Committee, said the kingdom had moved into preparations to welcome and enthrone the new monarch.
The ceremony is expected to begin with traditional rituals on the night of September 28 and continue into the early hours of September 29 before culminating in the formal enthronement.
Organisers say invitations have been sent to prominent guests, with preparations under way for representatives of the national government, Parliament, security agencies and cultural institutions.
The money behind the ceremony
The Shs925 million budget has placed fundraising at the centre of the final preparations.
Alex Ruhunda, a former Fort Portal City MP who heads the Finance and Resource Mobilisation Committee, has appealed for contributions in cash and kind, including food and other materials needed for the ceremony.
A bank account has been opened at Centenary Bank to receive contributions, while organisers say a mobile-money platform is also being arranged.
The fundraising campaign comes as organisers attempt to complete preparations within a compressed timetable following the late king’s funeral.
Mayombo has appealed to individuals and organisations to contribute towards the ceremony, describing the enthronement as an occasion for Tooro subjects collectively.
Rumours and reassurance
Alongside the fundraising drive, organisers are also trying to contain speculation about whether the ceremony will proceed as planned.
Mayombo rejected social-media reports suggesting that the enthronement could be cancelled.
Dr Richard Rwabuhinga, who heads the Protocol Committee, likewise confirmed September 29 as the official date and said preparations for invited guests were progressing.
The organisers say the major celebrations will take place at Karuzika Palace.
Leaders in the area have urged residents to maintain peace and follow the guidelines issued for the event.
Tooro’s annual coronation celebrations have become a recurring feature of the kingdom’s public life. But the September ceremony carries a different significance in the kingdom.
