Best Kemigisa Buried Her Husband, a King. Now She Has Accompanied Her Son, King Oyo, Home

The first time Queen Mother Best Kemigisa accompanied a king home in death, she was a young widow. It was 1995, and her husband, Omukama Patrick Olimi Kaboyo II, had died, leaving behind a three-year-old son who would soon inherit the throne.

That boy was Oyo. More than three decades later, Kemigisa, now 59, accompanied another king to his final resting place. This time, the king inside the casket was her son, who had grown into a monarch before dying at 34.

King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV arrived at Entebbe International Airport shortly after noon on Friday. President Yoweri Museveni, members of the Tooro royal family, government officials, religious leaders and kingdom officials were waiting. The casket was draped in the flags of Uganda and Tooro, while Kemigisa stood nearby.

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Throughout his reign as King of Tooro, Oyo was a good person and a good leader.

Museveni laid a wreath and paid his final respects. He had known Oyo since childhood and had helped guide the monarchy during the king's early years as a minor. The president recalled efforts to save Oyo after Kemigisa told him of the king's illness in November 2025. The government supported treatment first in Germany and later in the United States, but the efforts failed.

"Throughout his reign as King of Tooro, Oyo was a good person and a good leader," Museveni said. "His passing is a great loss to the people of Tooro and Uganda." The casket was later taken to a helicopter bound for Fort Portal in western Uganda. Kemigisa went with him, along with her daughter, Princess Ruth Komuntale, her grandson and her husband.

Kemigisa became regent after her husband's death in August 1995 and helped guide Oyo through his childhood. His coronation took place less than three weeks after his father's death. The kingdom needed a king, while the three-year-old needed a mother, and Kemigisa became both part of the institution and the family that carried it forward.

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His passing is a great loss to the people of Tooro and Uganda.