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Fort Portal, Uganda | URN | The mother of Tooro King-designate Edward Rukidi Nyabongo I was on Sunday evening warmly received at Karuziika Palace in Fort Portal City, where she will temporarily reside ahead of her son’s coronation on Tuesday. Yusta Asiimwe Kijanangoma Amooti arrived at the palace in a convoy accompanied by members of her family, clan members, friends and village mates.
A convoy moved through Fort Portal City before making its way to Karuziika Palace, where Asiimwe was welcomed with ululations and celebrations by members of the Babiito royal clan and other well-wishers. Prince Charles Kamurasi, the head of the Babiito royal clan, officially welcomed Asiimwe and members of her Abagombe clan to the palace.
Kamurasi described her arrival as the beginning of a new chapter in the history of the Tooro Kingdom. He handed Asiimwe the palace house where she would stay and formally gave her permission to begin carrying out her duties as the mother of the king. Kamurasi then led Asiimwe and her entourage into the palace.
Petero Rukindo, head of the Abagombe clan, thanked the Musuuga for receiving Asiimwe and formally welcoming the clan into the palace. Rukindo pledged the clan’s cooperation with the Musuuga and other members of the royal family in promoting the interests of the kingdom.
He also asked the royal family to guide and orient Asiimwe as she takes on her new responsibilities. “We ask for guidance and orientation so that we can understand our new role and perform it well,” Rukindo said. Godfrey Kanyole, spokesperson for the Abagombe clan, said the clan had accompanied the king’s mother to the palace with gifts, including cows and food items.
In Tooro tradition, the king’s mother, locally known as Omujwera Nyina Omukama, is one of the key figures in the kingdom’s traditional hierarchy. She is among the four principal figures traditionally associated with the monarchy, alongside the Omukama, the Musuuga, who heads the Babiito royal clan, and the king’s sister, the Batebe.
Asiimwe’s arrival at Karuziika Palace comes as preparations intensify for the coronation of Nyabongo, scheduled for Tuesday at the palace. The coronation will mark Nyabongo’s formal installation as the new Omukama of Tooro.
