King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV of the Tooro kingdom died on August 27 in the United States while receiving cancer treatment. Having taken the throne in 1995 at the age of three, he was the world's youngest reigning monarch at the time. His funeral is scheduled for Saturday and is expected to be attended by tens of thousands of mourners.
The traditional Ugandan kingdom has since been plunged into a bitter succession battle as family members and royal leaders jockey for control. A royal succession committee of elders announced a television news anchor as the successor to the late king, but the royal family has rejected this choice.
The dispute centers on competing candidates put forward by the committee and the family. While elders have chosen the TV journalist, the royal family claims that King Oyo Nyimba had a son who should instead succeed him. Questions have been raised as to whether the late monarch indeed had a son as the family claims.