Irumba Fredrick Amooti :
THE POWER OF OMUSUUGA)
Omusuuga, more precisely the Omujwera Musuuga, Charles Kayondo Kamurasi, is the head of the Babiito royal clan, the lineage from which every Omukama of Tooro descends. At 80, he is the man now steering the kingdom through the funeral and succession of the late King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV.
He is King Oyo's paternal uncle, born to the same parents as Oyo's father, the late Omukama Patrick David Matthew Kaboyo Olimi III. Kamurasi is the son of Sir George David Matthew Kamurasi Rukidi III, who reigned before Kaboyo. His mother, Leah Gaju, came from the Babiito line in Bunyoro; her father was a brother of Sir Tito Winyi IV, the Omukama of Bunyoro-Kitara. The name Kayondo, carried in memory of a Buganda prince who stood as his father's best man, links him to both kingdoms.
His wife is the sister of Queen Mother Best Kemigisa, Oyo's mother, a tie that places him inside the royal household on both sides.
Kamurasi has been present at every turning point of Oyo's life. When Kaboyo served as Uganda's ambassador to Cuba, he took the newborn prince and his mother into his own home in Fort Portal and cared for them for months. He helped carry out the enthronement rituals in 1995, when the 3-year-old Oyo was installed as the world's youngest reigning monarch. He has said plainly: "I was with him from the time of his birth up to the time of his death."
The office of Musuuga is not elected. It is a traditional palace appointment, passed from one holder to the next upon death. Kamurasi inherited it from his uncle, the late Kaboyo, after the previous holder, Case Kaggero, died. His authority is sweeping. He heads and guides the Babiito clan, advises the king on culture and royal affairs, and must be consulted last on any royal action, if he withholds his blessing, the king cannot proceed. When a king dies, he convenes the clan, announces the passing, oversees the burial, and leads the search for a successor. He is the one who installs the new Omukama.
That is exactly where he stands now. After Oyo's death on the 27th of August, Kamurasi formed a 21-member committee of Babiito elders to identify the next king. He has rejected the kingdom pri
2026-09-02 20:42:53