The deteriorating health of Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom Omukama Solomon Gafabusa Agutamba Rukirabasaija Iguru I has prompted renewed calls to take him abroad for specialised medical treatment. The chief prince, alias Okwir of the Babiito ruling clan, Fred Mugenyi Rucunya, made the call on Tuesday, saying the King’s current condition requires specialised care that he believes is only available outside the country.
Rucunya said he was concerned about the Omukama’s deteriorating condition and questioned why those currently managing the palace’s affairs and the King’s health had not sought specialised treatment for him. He did not disclose the nature of the Omukama’s illness but said the King was confined to the palace and was unable to perform his royal duties.
Recent reports have also quoted Rucunya appealing to Bunyoro subjects and Ugandans to pray for the Omukama, while saying the King’s condition had affected his ability to perform official duties. Rucunya said the Omukama was currently confined within the palace and receiving medication.
Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom Prime Minister Andrew Byakutaga has not publicly disclosed details about the Omukama’s current condition. The latest concerns come nearly two years after the Omukama was airlifted to Kampala for medical treatment after his health reportedly deteriorated.
In October 2024, the King was airlifted in a military aircraft and admitted to Ruby Hospital in Kampala. Kingdom officials confirmed at the time that his health had deteriorated but did not disclose details of his illness. The Omukama returned to his palace in November 2024 after spending nearly a month in Kampala receiving medical attention.
His treatment in 2024 followed a court application by Prince Apollo Kisoro, a former Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom Minister for Tourism and Assistant to the King, who had sought an order for the Omukama to be taken to India for specialised treatment. On October 3, 2024, Hoima High Court Judge Jesse Byaruhanga ordered that the Omukama be taken for specialised medical treatment in India or any other hospital in the world with the requisite facilities.
In his application, Prince Kisoro told the court that he had secured appointments with hospitals in New Delhi and mobilised resources to meet the King’s medical, travel and accommodation expenses. Justice Byaruhanga, in his ruling, said the Omukama was entitled to his right to health and ordered that he be taken for medical examination and further management whenever he was found to be sick or ill.
The renewed concerns over the King’s health come against the backdrop of an unresolved leadership dispute within Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom. Rucunya and the Babiito ruling clan have recently renewed demands for Byakutaga to leave the office of Prime Minister, arguing that his tenure expired. The Babiito issued an ultimatum for Byakutaga to vacate office by mid-October 2026, with Rucunya arguing that a further extension granted to the Prime Minister by the Royal Commission in June 2024 was unlawful.
Recent reports confirm the ultimatum and the disagreement over the authority to extend Byakutaga’s tenure. Rucunya has also argued that the authority to manage the affairs of the Kingdom when the Omukama is unable to perform his duties rests with him as Okwir. However, this claim forms part of the broader dispute over the administration of the Kingdom and should not be treated as an uncontested determination of authority. The dispute over Byakutaga’s tenure has persisted for several years.
He was appointed Prime Minister by Omukama Iguru in January 2018. His initial term expired in October 2023 and was subsequently extended to June 30, 2024. The Royal Commission later granted him another one-year extension in a June 27, 2024, letter, a decision Rucunya and the Babiito have challenged. The Bunyoro Kitara Kingdom has also been operating amid disagreements over its administrative structures, including the absence of a functioning cabinet and parliament since 2023.
In 2024, the Okwir moved to remove Byakutaga and announced an interim administrative structure, including the appointment of Dr Baltazar Kyamanywa Kasirivu Atwooki as interim Prime Minister. Byakutaga, however, has maintained that the authority to appoint and dismiss Kingdom officials’ rests with the Omukama. The latest developments have also been accompanied by increased security at the Kingdom headquarters in Hoima.
Anti-riot police and UPDF personnel were recently deployed at the Kingdom premises, with access to the Kingdom chambers restricted. Byakutaga said the deployment followed a security briefing about a possible attack, while police said they had intelligence indicating that some youths were being organised to demonstrate at the headquarters-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
