Journalist-Prince Set to Be Crowned King of Uganda's Tooro Kingdom

A prince who spent years as a broadcaster and editor with Uganda Broadcasting Corp. was set to be crowned king of Uganda's Tooro Kingdom on Tuesday, succeeding the monarchy's onetime "boy king" whose death last month prompted widespread mourning and a dispute over who should inherit the throne.

The prince, who took the regnal name Edward Rukidi Nyabongo, carried out rituals through the night before being escorted into the palace. He was to be formally presented to his followers later in the day.

The ceremony in Fort Portal, a remote town in western Uganda near the border with Congo, was expected to draw thousands of spectators in person and a television audience.

Nyabongo was not especially close to the front of the line of succession. Elders of the kingdom's ruling Babiito clan chose him from a group of eligible princes after King Oyo Nyimba died of cancer in August at the age of 34 without a publicly known heir.

Queen mother Best Kemigisa contested that choice, saying the late king's written will had not been honored. She said Oyo left a young son whose identity would be made known at the appropriate time, questioning the legitimacy of both Nyabongo and the clan elders' decision. Local media reported tense scenes at Oyo's funeral on Sept. 12, including a brief dispute over custody of the king's remains.

No alleged son has yet been presented, though purported photographs of a "Baby Oyo" have spread widely on social media, offering hope to followers of the deceased monarch. Critics argue that any such child should have been introduced to the kingdom's elders while his father was still alive.

"They have demonstrated that these are the norms of the kingdom," political analyst Nicholas Sengoba said of the Babiito's selection of Nyabongo, adding that "many of these positions may not be popular."

Oyo was crowned in 1995 at the age of 3 following his father's death, becoming a familiar figure in colorful robes and an object of affection for hundreds of thousands of subjects. At his coronation he underwent a series of tribal rituals and was led into the royal cemetery for a coming-of-age ceremony in which he tossed nine coffee beans into his father's tomb.

He once carried the unofficial title of the world's youngest king and drew attention from world leaders at national events, including South Africa's Nelson Mandela. Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi befriended the Tooro royal family, visiting Uganda repeatedly and supporting Oyo and Kemigisa for years before his death in October 2011. Regents appointed by the kingdom guided Oyo until he reached adulthood at 18.

Traditional kingdoms were abolished in the 1960s, after Uganda gained independence from British colonial rule, by a republican president who said the move would unify the country. They were restored in 1993. Traditional leaders hold no formal authority in the East African nation and are legally barred from partisan politics, but they command considerable influence among their communities as custodians of traditional culture.