Thousands line streets as King Oyo’s remains return to Tooro

What the report says

Thousands of mourners and Tooro Kingdom loyalists lined the Fort Portal-Kampala highway on the day the remains of Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV were transported back to Fort Portal, Uganda, ahead of his burial next week. According to The Observer, the late king died in Dallas, United States, last Thursday and was repatriated to Uganda as the kingdom began funeral preparations.

The report says the remains arrived by helicopter at Humura Playground in Kyegegwa around 1:15 p.m. and were then moved into a hearse for a procession toward Fort Portal. Crowds gathered from morning at trading centres, boda boda stages and roadside points along the Kyegegwa-Fort Portal route, while some businesses in Kyenjojo town reportedly closed as residents joined the mourning. Security personnel from police and the UPDF were deployed to manage traffic and the large turnout.

Mourners and local leaders described King Oyo as a unifying figure and a supporter of development, health, sports and cultural traditions. The kingdom said his remains would lie in state at Karuzika Royal Palace in Fort Portal until Saturday, September 12, when he is scheduled to be buried at the Karambi Royal Tombs.

In broader context, King Oyo was one of Uganda’s longest-serving traditional rulers, having ascended the Tooro throne in 1995 at age three after the death of his father. The public procession underscored both the scale of support for the monarchy and the cultural significance of the burial arrangements in Tooro.