The King’s remains in Dallas, Texas, before being loaded onto the plane enroute to Uganda
HABARI DAILY I Kampala, Uganda I The body of the late Tooro King, Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, is scheduled to arrive at Entebbe International Airport at 10:00 a.m. on Friday, September 4, 2026, marking the beginning of the formal funeral programme for the 34-year-old monarch.
The King’s remains left Dallas, Texas, in the United States on Wednesday, September 2, after relatives, friends and colleagues gathered for prayers before the casket was loaded for its journey home.
Images shared from the United States showed the coffin at a cargo facility, where mourners prayed for journey mercies before the remains were prepared for transportation to Uganda.
The arrival will bring to an end the first phase of arrangements following the King’s death on August 27, 2026, in the United States, where he had been receiving treatment for an aggressive form of cancer.
President Yoweri Museveni is expected to lead government officials, members of the Tooro Royal Family and cultural leaders in receiving the casket at Entebbe International Airport.
Museveni, who granted the late monarch an official burial, is also expected to pay his final respects before the remains begin the journey to western Uganda.
The arrival programme was revised after an earlier announcement that the King’s body would reach Entebbe on Thursday, September 3, at 10:00 a.m.
Tooro Prime Minister Calvin Armstrong Rwomiire Akiiki announced the change on Wednesday while hosting Buganda Kingdom Prime Minister Charles Peter Mayiga at King Oyo’s residence in Buziga, Kampala.
The revised programme now provides for the casket to be received at Entebbe before being airlifted by helicopter to Kyegegwa District.
From Kyegegwa, the body will be transported by road towards Karuziika Palace in Fort Portal City, the official palace of the Tooro Kingdom and the designated centre for the monarch’s traditional mourning and funeral rites.
The procession from Kyegegwa is expected to give members of the public an opportunity to pay their final respects. According to the funeral arrangements, the coffin will be placed on an open carrier as it travels towards Fort Portal, allowing mourners along the route to see and honour their departed King.
Karuziika Palace will then become the centre of the royal mourning ceremonies.
Under Tooro cultural protocols, the body of a deceased Omukama is expected to remain at the official palace rather than being moved between different royal residences. The Office of the Omujwera Musuuga, which oversees cultural funeral rites, has identified Karuziika as the kingdom’s only official palace, distinguishing it from other royal properties such as the Buziga residence.
The official nine-day mourning period is expected to begin once King Oyo’s body reaches Karuziika Palace.
His remains will remain at the palace throughout the mourning period before eventually being transferred to the Karambi Royal Tombs for burial.
Rwomiire said the kingdom’s immediate priority had been to ensure that the late monarch was returned home and accorded a funeral befitting his position.
“At this solemn moment, there can be no greater priority for the Kingdom than bringing our King home and laying him to rest with the dignity, honour and respect befitting His Majesty,” Rwomiire said.
King Oyo’s death brought an end to a reign that lasted nearly 31 years. He ascended the Tooro throne in September 1995 at the age of three, following the death of his father, Omukama Patrick David Matthew Kaboyo Olimi III.
His unusually long reign made him one of the most recognisable traditional leaders in Uganda, having grown from a child monarch into an adult who continued to represent the Tooro Kingdom at cultural, national and international events.
His death has triggered widespread mourning across Tooro and Uganda, with cultural leaders, political figures, members of the royal family and ordinary citizens expressing grief over the loss.
The Government has also accorded the late King national recognition. Museveni directed that the national flag be flown at half-mast for three days — the day before the burial, the burial day and the day after.
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