By Spy Investigations Desk
Fort Portal-The dramatic succession race for the Tooro Kingdom has taken another unexpected turn, barely a day after The Spy Uganda reported that George Kamurasi Desmond David had been selected as the next Omukama.
Sources close to the unfolding succession process now claim that Kamurasi has rejected the throne, saying he would rather remain with his happy family in the United Kingdom and continue with his life, including his sports career.
The development, if formally confirmed, would throw the Babiito succession process back into uncertainty and reopen the contest for who should succeed the late Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV.
On Friday, TheSpy Uganda reported that a closed-door meeting at Fort Motel in Fort Portal had selected Kamurasi after 18 of the 21 members involved in the Babiito succession process attended the final meeting.
According to information from inside the process, Kamurasi obtained 15 of the 18 votes, giving him a decisive victory. Musuuga Kamurasi also voted virtually making the voters 19. The other two who missed gave no apology or explanation.
Kamurasi, who is the son of late Jimmy Mugenyi and grandson of the late Sir George Rukidi Kamurasi, had emerged as the preferred candidate after the Babiito deliberations.
But sources now say the man who won the contest was not prepared for what came next. “Nobody told him he was coming to become king and that’s how it is ofcourse,” a source said.
According to sources familiar with the events, when President Yoweri Museveni facilitated Kamurasi’s return to Uganda with a fully paid ticket with his family, he was allegedly told that he was coming to bury his brother, King Oyo.
A source told TheSpy that Kamurasi was deliberately not briefed about the possibility of becoming the next Omukama over the telephone.
“He called him to come and bury his brother Oyo. No one prepared him from the word go that he would become the next king. Even the 21-member committee suggested all the two names without consulting them,” the source claimed.
The source explained that the reasoning behind the process was to avoid candidates developing resentment if they were consulted individually and subsequently lost the vote.
“The idea is that if they consult you and then vote another, the one who hasn’t gone through might develop desires to undermine and fight the one who won the contest. So it’s only the winner who is then informed,” the source added.
Sources say Kamurasi has been living in the United Kingdom, where he has built a family life with his British wife and children. According to the same sources, he is reluctant to abandon that life and return permanently to the demands of the Tooro throne.
He is also said to have an interest in continuing his sports career, making the prospect of assuming the responsibilities of a traditional monarch particularly difficult for him.
Sources further claim that Kamurasi and his family are currently in Fort Portal under heightened security by SFC under the command and control of CDF Gen. Muhoozi Kainerugaba who has camped in Fort Portal since Thursday.
Another claim emerging from sources close to the succession debate concerns Kamurasi’s marriage.
Sources allege that his British wife became concerned about the cultural expectations that could accompany his installation as Omukama, including claims that the institution could require him to take a Mutooro wife or alter his existing marital arrangements.
However, these claims could not independently be verified, and there is no public statement from Kamurasi or his wife confirming that this influenced his reported decision. Kamurasi is understood to be formally married and has children.
The reported rejection has also opened a debate about whether a member of the Babiito royal family can decline a kingship after being selected.
One source familiar with the cultural argument told TheSpy that traditionally, refusing a throne entrusted to an individual by the royal family is considered unacceptable and an abomination.
“In the culture, he was not supposed to refuse. It is an abomination to reject the throne entrusted to you by the royal family,” the source said.
The cultural and legal implications of such a refusal, however, remain matters for the Babiito leadership and relevant cultural authorities to address.
Edward Kiijanangoma back in the race
Kamurasi’s reported decision could now dramatically reshape the succession contest.
Edward Kiijanangoma is emerging once again as a potential contender, according to sources familiar with the discussions.
There had also been attention on Stephen Karamagi, but questions have reportedly been raised within the succession discussions concerning eligibility under the applicable royal and cultural rules.
”Stephen Karamagi’s children don’t qualify because their mother is Rwandese,” a source added.
For now, the big question confronting Tooro is simple:
If George Kamurasi Desmond David refuses the crown, who will be the next Omukama?
After yesterday’s dramatic media announcement, the Tooro succession story has entered yet another unexpected chapter.
Watch this space.🏃🏃👑
