King Oyo: Humility beyond the crown
They remember a young man who could engage in conversation with a chapati seller, a boda boda rider or a child playing near his home without making them feel inferior.
Now the late His Majesty Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, the Omukama of Tooro Kingdom (File photo)
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A sombre mood covered Buziga, a leafy Kampala suburb in Makindye Division, on Friday, August 28, 2026, as residents gathered at the palace of the late Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV of Tooro for a vigil, mourning a king they did not regard as a distant royal figure, but as their own neighbour, friend and son.
On the night of August 28, residents gathered in small groups, some sitting quietly while others exchanged memories of the youthful monarch whose 31-year reign began when he was only three years old.
For those who lived around his palace in Upper Mawanga Village, Oyo was a king who never allowed his title to stand between him and ordinary people.
They remember a young man who could engage in conversation with a chapati seller, a boda boda rider or a child playing near his home without making them feel inferior.
For Justine Nakungu, who lives behind the late king's palace, the news of the death of the 34-year-old king is difficult to accept.
“Bwebityo bwebiwede omwaana waffe alugenze,” she said, loosely translated as, “That is how it has ended. Our son is gone, just like that.”
For Nakungu, Oyo was not only the King of Tooro but the boy she watched grow up next door.
She remembers how he would wave at residents whenever he passed, whether they responded or not.
“For us around here, King Oyo was not just a king, but our child and friend. The Queen Mother is also our friend. The family moved here when he was a young boy and grew up among us. He never walked or drove past anyone without saying hello,” Nakungu recalled, tears rolling down her cheeks.
She remembered one rainy day when Oyo's convoy stopped and gave her a lift to Nsambya, where she was going to visit her sick child.
That simple gesture, she said, remained one of the many memories that made Oyo feel like a member of the community rather than a distant monarch.
A King who loved children
The depth of Oyo's relationship with the community was perhaps most evident among the children who lived around his palace.
On Friday afternoon, I bumped into as two boys, Mansoor Omar and Gayle, in a busy shopping centre near the Palace.
It was barely 15 hours since the announcement of the king's death, but for the children who had grown accustomed to seeing him around the neighbourhood, the news was difficult to comprehend.
“Wamma, is it true that Uncle Oyo died?” one of them asked me as I approached them.
“He has been good to us. While playing in a small field near his palace, our ball often landed into his compound. He would throw our ball back, he never rebuked us.
He even allowed us to swim in his pool and play football with us. On some Sundays, he would bring a bouncing castle, thereby inviting more children," the boys narrated.
They also remembered occasionally joining him as he jogged along the village paths.
Their memories painted a picture of a king who made children feel welcome in his presence.
No wonder, at his vigil in Buziga on Friday, his Minister of State for Youth, Nicholas Mugume, described Oyo as a lover of children.
“He dedicated his birthday to the immunisation of children and would vaccinate the first child himself,” Mugume said.
Humble majesty
For a king who grew from childhood to adulthood in one of Kampala's affluent neighbourhoods and attended schools in Uganda and abroad, residents might have expected him to live a life removed from ordinary people.
But his neighbours remember a different Oyo.
Mulondo, a boda boda rider in Munyonyo, described him as a humble monarch who freely interacted with residents.
“Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru has been a very humble king who was not proud, especially around this community. He used to freely come to the market in Gaba and buy his groceries. He could even bargain over prices, but always with a smile,” Mulondo said.
"He has been a disciplined king, one who was close to his subjects. May his soul rest in peace,” Mulondo said.
A community-minded king
Sebulime recalled that the king registered to vote in the 2018 Local Council I elections, although he did not eventually turn up to cast his ballot.
“He never missed giving us contributions towards security and other community causes whenever we called at his palace,” Sebulime said.
For the local community, such gestures were part of the relationship that developed between the king and his neighbours over the years.
A legacy that live son
By 7pm, the once tightly guarded palace gate had been opened to the public as mourners streamed in to pay their respects.
The vigil began with prayers led by Rev. Patrick Kamara of All Saints Church, Nakasero, who asked God to comfort the royal family and the people of Tooro during what he described as a difficult moment.
“We ask for your power, like you showed your power when you died on the cross and rose again. We put our hope in you, dear Lord,” he prayed.
Kamara urged mourners to build legacies while they were still alive, saying Oyo had left behind a legacy that would continue to speak for him.
“Do not work to be forgotten but touch the lives of those around you so that when you die, your name lives on,” he said.
Another neighbour, Hajji Frouk Ntege Sebagala, described Oyo as one of the most modern kings of his generation.
“He was a young monarch who had just begun to understand and settle into his kingdom very well, but God always had His plans. We pray and hope that God will give the people of Tooro and Uganda the best they deserve,” Ntege said.
Among those who attended the vigil were Tooro Kingdom Premier Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire, Minister for Tourism Elcie Kantu, Deputy Minister for Youth Nicholas Mugume and Kingdom Health Minister Richard Mugahe.
Government officials included Robert Kasande of the Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs.
For the people of Tooro, his death marks the end of a historic reign.
But in Upper Mawanga, his neighbours are mourning something more personal — the loss of a young man they watched grow up, a king who became their neighbour, their friend and, in the words of one grieving resident, their son.
King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, who died on Thursday, August 27, 2026, ascended the Tooro throne in 1995 at the age of three, following the death of his father, King Patrick Olimi Kaboyo III.