Attorney General Clears Way for Edward Rukidi Coronation

• Tooro has set September 29, 2026, for Kijanangoma’s coronation.

• He will ascend the throne as Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I.

• Sam Mayanja said no formal court challenge had been registered.

• King Oyo’s family disputes the selection and says he left a son as heir.

Attorney General Sam Mayanja has cleared Tooro Kingdom to continue preparations for the coronation of Crown Prince Edward Rukidi Kijanangoma despite opposition from members of the late King Oyo’s family.

The Tooro Kingdom Supreme Council has set September 29, 2026, as the coronation date. Kijanangoma will take the throne as Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I, the 14th Omukama of Tooro.

Mayanja said the kingdom authorities were free to proceed because no one had filed a formal challenge in court.

The decision removes an immediate legal obstacle to the coronation but does not end the dispute over who should succeed King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV.

King Oyo died on August 27, 2026, after battling aggressive cancer. His death opened a succession contest within the Babiito royal clan.

A 21-member succession committee selected Kijanangoma after its first choice, Prince George Desmond Kamurasi, declined the throne. The committee later presented Kijanangoma to the kingdom as Oyo’s successor.

The Tooro Kingdom Supreme Council has since endorsed the choice and approved plans for his coronation.

However, Princess Ruth Komuntale and other members of the royal family rejected the decision. They said King Oyo left a will naming his biological son as heir.

The family called for a review of the succession process and asked the kingdom to consider the alleged heir before confirming another monarch.

The claim placed Kijanangoma’s selection under scrutiny and raised the prospect of a court battle. However, Mayanja said no formal case had been registered to stop the process.

His position leaves those opposed to Kijanangoma’s selection with the option of seeking court intervention before the coronation.

Preparations will now continue as Tooro moves towards installing its first new monarch in more than three decades. King Oyo ascended the throne in 1995 at the age of three following the death of his father, King Patrick Olimi Kaboyo III.

Kijanangoma’s coronation will mark the final stage of the succession process. It will also test whether the kingdom can unite after weeks of disagreement within the royal family and the Babiito clan.