Tooro clan heads threaten to boycott King Oyo coronation fete

Tooro Kingdom loyalists were Sunday bustling about excitedly as they put in final touches in the preparations to celebrate 27 years since their king, Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, was installed.
The final day for the Empango celebration is slated for Monday at Karuziika Palace in Fort Portal City. By Sunday evening, all the traditional rituals to mark the celebration were performed.
King Oyo ascended to the throne at the age of three after his father, King Patrick Kaboyo Olimi, died in 1995.
The minister for culture clan and Mobilization, Mr Sunday Rusoke, who also doubles as chairman organizing committee, said all is set to mark this year’s coronation anniversary.
“We have held several meeting and final meeting was on Sunday. All traditional cultural rituals have been performed which signifies that the celebrations have started today, Monday will be final day,” he explained.
The traditional rituals, which included, presentation of the royal regalia, royal drums among others were performed by the Basiita clan members and blessed by the king.
The coronation anniversary, traditionally known as Empango, is marked annually on the day the reigning king in Tooro ascended the throne.
To mark this year's Empango celebrations, King Oyo on Friday opened a health camp and Muchwa Health Center III in Fort Portal City to allow his subjects access free medical healthcare.
However, the chairman of clan heads in Tooro, Rev Kintu Willy Muhanda, while addressing journalists at Toro club on Sunday afternoon, said they [clan heads] would not attend this year’s coronation anniversary because the King declined to respond to a petition they wrote to him on September 4.

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“We are over 30 clan heads, we have decided to boycott this year coronation anniversary and we want to tell all people not attend the function. In our petition we had said if we don’t get response we shall go to court and it’s what we are going to do,” he said.
The clan heads in their petition, had requested the king to reverse his decision on the appointment of the new Prime Minister, Mr Steven Kiyingi. Mr Kiyingi was appointed following the resignation of Mr Bernard Tungwako.
The clan leaders said the appointment of Kiyingi was not done in the rightful procedure, as members of the supreme council of Tooro Kingdom did not endorse him.