One hundred years from today, in 2126, when everyone reading this post is long gone, children in schools in Uganda and abroad will read that once upon a time, there lived a much-loved monarch in a kingdom on the foothills of the Rwenzori Mountains called Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV.
They will be told that his ascension to the throne as a three-year-old toddler, following the death of his father in 1995, was received with joy and excitement, in equal but opposite measure to the outpouring of grief when he died at the young age of 34 in August 2026.
What we witnessed on NTV Uganda, UBC TV, BBS Terefayina, Tayari West TV, Bukedde Online, Salt TV Uganda and other media platforms will be recorded in history books as one of the most publicised, visible and emotionally gripping royal deaths covered in the modern history of Uganda, perhaps rivalled only by the global coverage of the deaths of Princess Diana and Michael Jackson.
In 100 years, several other kings will have come and gone. But the name and legacy of Oyo, a monarch who built bridges, connected cultures, motivated young people to dream big, championed causes bigger than himself, connected with both the young and old, the rich and poor, and carried himself with dignity, will still be talked about.
Many children’s storybooks will be written and published about his life and times. Films will be made about his adventures, exploits and milestones, introducing future generations to a king whose life touched people far beyond the boundaries of his kingdom.
There will be gripping accounts of the illness that claimed his life and the debates that followed about his succession. But, most importantly, there will be stories about how people from all walks of life mourned the passing of a much-loved king.
For the Bakiga of south-western Uganda who will be alive then, they will read accounts of how King Oyo visited Kabale in 2019, toured Lake Bunyonyi, met religious leaders, interacted with young people, participated in a campfire dialogue about the relationship between Kigezi and Tooro, and joined the people in dancing the traditional Kiga dance.
All this may sound like a movie to future generations. But for those of us who were there, even though we will no longer be here, our memories will carry the privilege of having witnessed history being made before our own eyes.
Perhaps that is the greatest legacy of King Oyo: not merely that he occupied a throne, but that he left memories in the hearts of people and connections across communities that time may struggle to erase.
The writer, Julius Mucunguzi, is head of Public Relations and spokesperson of the Electoral Commission of Uganda.
