Childhood days in most part of the world are meant for kids not too conscious of their immediate environment, with babies trying to suck round their mother. The narrative of childhood was different for King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, has become the ruler of a kingdom at a tender age of 3.
Today, the 28-year-old King Oyo is ruling over about 2 million people in the Toro Kingdom, which is one of the four kingdoms in East Africa, Uganda.
King Oyo was coronated in 1995 after his father’s demise (Omukama, King of Toro). His ascension to the throne at this tender age of 3 to become the12th ruler of the kingdom, earned him a place in the Guinness World Records Book as the World’s Youngest Monarch.
King Oyo, born as a prince to Late King Patrick David Matthew Kaboyo Olimi III and Queen Best Kemigisa Kaboyo on April 16, 1992, becomes unavoidable for him to climb his late father’s royal stool.
The coronation rituals for Oyo started a week after his father’s burial at a midnight time of 2 a.m.
As their custom demands, a mock battle to test Oyo’s sacred right to the throne took place. He was also made to sound Nyalebr, which is a sacred Chwezi drum from his forefathers with a blessing of the blood of a bull and white hen spilled on him.
The kingdom later went agog upon the arrival of the new ruler into the palace at dawn.
His first meal as a King was constituted of millet dough, and sat on the lap of a virgin girl who swore allegiance to the Crown.
Image credit: eagle.co.ug
As a young and naive ruler he was then, he tried to exploit the fun of childhood by playing with his toys, and cried on his Queen mother’s lap.
A day after his coronation, King Oyo’s duties had started with his meeting with cabinet members. His childhood was supported with three regents who guided his growth into the proper role of a King.
His regents were in the place of his mother, Queen Best; his aunt, Princess Elizabeth Bagaaya; and the Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, who served in the capacity till his mature age of 18.
His childhood Kingship attracted the interest of some African leaders like Libya’s former leader, Myanmar Gaddafi, who was the kingdom’s patron with his supporting donation of $200,000.
The young king now personally champion numerous initiatives money raising, seeking for educational and social-economic interventions towards the welfare of his people, with him having the prime minister, councilmen, and board of regents under his cabinet.
The young King Oyo has been able to travel out of the shores of Uganda to seek for foreign aid and collaborations to bring great development to Toro Kingdom.
The Western Uganda Toro Kingdom was with other three kingdoms in Uganda (Buganda, Bunyoro-Kitara, Busoga), was disbanded forcefully in the 1960s by Milton Obote’s regime and completely outlawed by the constitution seven years later.
The kingdoms were later reinstated in 1993 when a democratically elected government took power on the condition of the rulers looking away from national politics, but their focus should be solely on cultural affairs.
Since the reformation of the kingdom, Most people in the Toro kingdom are grappling with poverty with an increasing unemployment rate. This is what King Oyo is trying to conquer in his aim to see the welfare of his subjects prosperous, even at the expense of his vibrant life at having fun.
“I like to have fun but not too much fun because when you have too much fun you start to worry about your image,” King Oyo told Arabian Business from his plush suite at the Burj Al Arab in 2015.
“So I tend to just go to the movies, have lunch or dinner with my friends over the weekend and do a lot of outdoor activities.”
His state of the art palace is built on a hill in Fort Portal district, with another official residence of his at the nation’s capital, Kampala, bring heavily guarded with military personnel. He is royalty, but King Oyo still wishes himself gallivanting round the kingdom with other children.
“When I was eight years old that’s when I realised the responsibility I had, who I was and what I had to do.
“Everything fell into place; everything clicked. How I was going to do it, I wasn’t sure, but I definitely knew who I was and what I had to do.”
In school, where he had military guards hovering all over, Oyo said he realized that he was different from his colleagues as he had huge responsibilities.
“Outside of school is probably when I had to be a bit more serious, but when I was at school it was basically an environment that allowed me to be myself because the students around me treated me like any other student, which allowed me to be like them and to also see another side to me as a person — as a king, an individual and a student. It made me very down to earth, which I am very grateful for.”
Image credit: Blizz Uganda
King Oyo’s academic pursuit spanned from attending preschool in London, England before proceeding to Kampala International School, Uganda.
He furthered his education unto tertiary level in 2010 at the University of Winchester in Winchester, Hampshire, England and graduated in October 2013 with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management.
Toro Kingdom is abundant with lush green vegetation with natural biodiversity in game reserve and national parks. The kingdom is hence the heart of tourism in Uganda.
King Oyo’s keen interest is to see his people doing well in the areas of education and health.
“I’d like to empower my people, to see them thriving, to see them out of poverty, to give them that platform or survival kit so they don’t have to struggle to send their kids to school or to get money for transport or to take them to the hospital, while there aren’t that many hospitals as well,” he said.
“His age brings a lot of financial support from leaders who want to mentor him and see him succeed,” Ruhweza Remigious, a 34-year-old carpenter who lives around the palace in Fort Portal was quoted by news site CNN in 2010.
“Most Africans are led by older people who don’t do anything.”
“He is young and eager, and we hope he will give us a better life and modernize our infrastructures.”
