The Obusinga Bwa Rwenzururu (OBR) has cautioned the public against the growing circulation of inflammatory, insulting and divisive messages on social media concerning the status of the Kirindi ancestral home in Bundibugyo District and the kingdom’s official palace in Kasese District.
The clarification comes amid renewed public debate over where the kingdom should be headquartered, a matter that has long been linked to differences between King Charles Wesley Mumbere Irema-Ngoma and his younger brother, Christopher Kibanzanga.
The disagreement dates back several years and became particularly visible in 2019 following the death of their mother, Christine Biira Mukirania. King Mumbere had wished that she be buried at Nyamirangara in Muhokya, Kasese District, while Kibanzanga insisted on her burial at the family’s ancestral home in Kirindi, Bundibugyo District. The burial eventually took place in Kirindi.
In recent weeks, the debate has resurfaced, with several social media users, backed by some local political leaders, calling for the Obusinga Bwa Rwenzururu headquarters to be relocated from Kasese to Kirindi because, to them, it is the royal family’s ancestral home.
Addressing journalists on Wednesday, the Kingdom’s Prime Minister, Benson Kule Baritazale, said the messages circulating online were creating public confusion over the location of the kingdom’s headquarters and the status of Kirindi. He clarified that Kirindi is the ancestral home of the Masanduko family, the ancestral lineage of King Mumbere, and is privately owned.
It is neither an official palace nor the headquarters of the Obusinga Bwa Rwenzururu, he said. He urged members of the public and social media users to stop portraying Kirindi as the kingdom’s headquarters or making statements likely to create misunderstanding about its ownership and institutional status.
The Prime Minister warned that threatening, defamatory or malicious messages shared through social media and other digital platforms could attract legal action under Uganda’s Computer Misuse Act. He also appealed to the public to respect Omusinga Mumbere, saying the cultural leader remains a symbol of unity, dignity and heritage for the people of the Rwenzori region.
Baritazale said differences of opinion should be handled respectfully, adding that abusive or derogatory remarks directed at the Omusinga or members of the royal family undermine the kingdom’s efforts to promote peace and reconciliation.
He reaffirmed the kingdom’s commitment to its five pillars of peace, unity, reconciliation, socio-economic and cultural transformation, and mindset change, urging members to uphold these values and avoid actions that could fuel division-URN. Give us feedback on this story through our email: kamwokyatimes@gmail.com
