By Aggrey Baba
Paying tribute to the King of Tooro Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru, the permanent secretary of Uganda’s Judiciary Pius Bigirimana has recalled a humorous moment when the young king joked that he would become the King of Bafumbira after Bigirimana married his aunt.
Bigirimana was among mourners who visited the late King’s home in Buziga on Monday to convey sympathies to the royal family.
The Judiciary PS said the late King personally sent him a congratulatory message when he married his aunt.
“I remember when I was wedding, the King sent a message of congratulations for marrying his aunt. Then he made people laugh. He said, ‘Since you have married my aunt, then I am going to become the King of Bafumbira,” Bigirimana said.
The joke, Bigirimana said, was more than just the humor of a young King, but symbolized the growing relationship between the people of Tooro and Bafumbira, who, he noted, have strong family and social ties.
For a moment, the late king appeared ready to extend the boundaries of his royal influence towards Kigezi, apparently claiming a new kingdom by virtue of his aunt’s marriage.
“But that was really being humorous. But it meant, it gave a lot of signal that the relationship between the people of Tooro and Bafumbira was becoming stronger,” Bigirimana said.
He explained that many people who migrated to Tooro have settled in Fort Portal and surrounding areas, developing close relationships with the Kingdom and its people.
“So the people of Bafumbira and Tooro are friends. They are relatives,” he said.
Bigirimana said the death of King Oyo was therefore not only a loss to the people of Tooro but to all Ugandans, describing it as particularly painful because of the young age at which the monarch died.
“It’s a very sad moment for the people of Tooro in particular, but also for the people of Uganda. It’s very sad for us as a family, because my wife you see here is an aunt to the late King,” he said.
He urged Ugandans to pray for the Queen Mother, the royal family and relatives as they come to terms with the loss.
“We only have to pray to God that the Queen Mother remains very strong, the family, relatives, in these trying moments, and may his soul rest in eternal peace,” Bigirimana said. (For comments on this story, get back to us on 0705579994 [WhatsApp line], 0779411734 & 041 4674611 or email us at mulengeranews@gmail.com).
