The kingdom that eats together stays together: Back from Nagunda

We apologise for failing to bring you a report from the Kingdom of Nagunda, that poor cousin of the tech-smart Wakanda kingdom, since the last one “Back to Nagunda, where King Mukayo fights on”, Daily Monitor, December 14, 2022.

Nagunda is a unique land. It has elected kings, and some commoners sit with the royal family to pick kings or queens who are supposed to rule for 15 years. However, some years ago Mukayo blindsided the kingdom, organizing a rebellion which changed the rules to remove the 15-year limitation.

Anyway, fascinated by Nagunda, many of you wrote in, unhappy with this failure to offer an update, and calling us lazy. One you said we should “never start things you can’t finish”. We feel your frustration, but it wasn’t on us. Nagunda was one of the last territories in the world to lift Covid restrictions and opened up fully for international travel only in early 2023.

In fact, the great King Mukayo the First of Nagunda, is the last leader in the world who maintains some Covid rules for the palace, and the hilly domains of the kingdom.

Until a few weeks ago, when he was meeting the Supreme Council of Royals and foreign dignitaries, he not only wore a mask but also increased the social distance. In some cases, his visitors sat on an opposite hill 100 metres away, and he spoke to them through an intercom wired to a loudspeaker. He will live long, Mukayo.

Anyway, permission for journalists to enter Mukayo again was only granted early this year.

The last time we reported on the continuing restlessness in the kingdom, several groups were calling for an ageing Mukayo to step down and hand power to a young prince or princess with more stamina ahead of the Renewal scheduled for between 2026 and 2027.

We reported then that a wily Mukayo had already made some early deft moves to secure his throne in the face of many challenges: “An influential palace source, who I met in a darkened kafunda in one of the suburbs of Lapa, the Nagunda capital, told me Mukayo might look besieged, but it would be a mistake to underestimate him.

“For one, he said Mukayo had successfully propped up other princes [against perceived frontrunner successor Prince Rugaboozi] most notably Prince Edukuru and Prince Bogode – and the low-key Viscount Mbazima - and strengthened their claim to the throne. ‘Rugaboozi is no longer alone, and with Edukuru and Bogode in the race, they are now jostling among themselves, allowing Mukayo to rebuild his defences and create new alliances. Mukayo will win the Renewal in five years and remain king’”, he said.

We found a weakened Prince Rugaboozi and a strengthened Mukayo. The king even created a “Water Brigade” and appointed Mukayo to chair its board. An angry Rugaboozi supporter told us, “Mukayo’s greed for power has no end. He has demoted our Prince Rugaboozi to carry water instead of a gun”. However, the story we found on the ground is more complicated.

Yes, Mukayo has activated his viceroys to roam the kingdom to mobilise support for his Renewal. However, the current advantage he enjoys comes from how tactically he has disbursed royal patronage. The motto of this operation, according to palace sources who weren’t authorised to speak on the record, allegedly is; “A kingdom that eats together stays together”.

For years Mukayo had faced rebellious minor royal houses in the southern territory of Gabunda, in the eastern plains of Bubute, and in the northern highlands of Lacho. After decades of punishing military expeditions, Mukayo changed tack.

Instead of the cavalry, he sent envoys bearing gold, silk, Turkish carpets, vehicles, tickets for expensive cruises around the world, and parcels of crown land for their leaders.

The bounties were too huge for most royal houses to say no to. Many of them took their cut, and have taken off on cruises around the world. A few diehards who have rejected what they say is the fruit of King Mukayo’s poisonous tree, have been isolated. Opposition to Mukayo seeking a Renewal is collapsing.

Mukayo’s problem is how to pay for it. He has taken some drastic steps to solve the problem. He granted a foreign company a concession over very fertile coffee and vanilla growing lands in the east, west and south in exchange for it paying huge sums of money into the Royal Kitty for the Renewal campaign.

Another foreign company got a contract to supply air worth $300 million – half of which will go to Mukayo’s war chest. All he has left to do is ensure that his hands don’t tremble, otherwise, he won’t be able to put the crown on his head.

Mr Onyango-Obbo is a journalist, writer and curator of the “Wall of Great Africans”. Twitter@cobbo3