The Rwenzururu Kingdom in Kasese has postponed the 60th coronation anniversary of Omusinga Charles Wesley Mumbere Iremangoma for the second consecutive year, citing the King’s medical appointments in Turkey.
The anniversary, which had been scheduled for October 19, 2026, will now be held on November 14 alongside the Omusinga’s birthday run, the Kingdom has announced.
The postponement has revived questions among the King’s subjects about the future of one of the Kingdom’s most important public ceremonies, which has been repeatedly disrupted by the Omusinga’s absence since his release from detention on October 4, 2023.
The Kingdom’s Omulerembera (Prime Minister), Mr Benson Kule Baritazale, made an announcement saying the decision followed guidance from the King, who is currently in Istanbul, Turkey, for a medical review.
‘I bring you royal greetings from His Majesty Charles Wesley Mumbere Iremangoma, the entire royal household and the Cabinet. The issue that has brought us here is to inform the public that we are going to combine the coronation function and the Omusinga’s birthday run on November 14 this year,’ Mr Baritazale said.
However, the prime minister did not give the king’s subjects assurance on whether on November 14 the king will be available or will have returned.
He said the King appreciated the work of the 30-member coronation organising committee, the royal family and subjects who had contributed to preparations for the anniversary.
The committee, chaired by the second deputy Prime Minister, Mr Patrick Baluku Muhesi, and deputised by Mr Noah Nzaghale, had been mobilising about Shs 240 million to finance the celebrations.
The Kingdom now wants its subjects, well-wishers and partners to adjust their programmes and continue contributing towards the November event.
‘We call upon all the Banya-Rwenzururu, well-wishers and our partners to adjust their programmes accordingly and be part of the combined coronation Diamond Jubilee and the second edition of the Omusinga’s Birthday Run,’ Mr Baritazale said.
A ceremony repeatedly disrupted
The King was expected to mark 60 years since he ascended the Rwenzururu throne in 1966 and 17 years since the government formally recognised him as a cultural leader.
However, since his release from detention in 2023, only two major coronation anniversary celebrations have been held-in 2023 and 2024.
Last year, on October 12, 2025, just seven days before his 59th coronation anniversary, the Omusinga travelled to Turkey for a medical review.
He did not return to Uganda until December, despite kingdom officials postponing the anniversary celebrations from October 19 to November 14, a date that also coincided with his birthday. The celebrations were ultimately not held.
After his return, the Omusinga remained in Kampala before travelling to Kasese in March 2026. Six months later, in September, he again travelled to Turkey for what the kingdom described as a routine medical review.
The kingdom’s Prime Minister said Omusinga had been given six months to return to Turkey for a scheduled follow-up after his previous medical review.
He dismissed reports circulating on social media that the king was critically ill, saying the latest trip was part of the routine medical follow-up.
The King’s prolonged absence from public functions has increasingly become a subject of concern among some of his subjects.
Mr Johnson Masereka, a resident of Bwethe Village in Kyondo Sub-county, said he was disappointed when he learnt that the anniversary would not take place on October 19.
He said he had expected the King to use the occasion to address issues affecting the region, including teenage pregnancy, climate change, corruption and education.
‘Last year, we missed the anniversary and took it in good faith because we all knew that the King was out of his Kingdom in Turkey for medical attention. Let the Cabinet tell us that the King is seriously sick, and we pray for him,’ Mr Masereka said.
The 57th coronation anniversary was held on 19th October 2023 at Kilembe Golf Course along Kilembe Road in Kasese. The Vice President, retired Maj Gen Jessica Alupo, represented President Museveni at the function, which attracted a large crowd.
The following year, preparations for another anniversary were disrupted when the King travelled to Turkey for medical attention.
The absence was particularly noticeable because the King did not appear at his birthday celebrations, with Kingdom officials again linking his absence to medical appointments abroad.
Preparations halted
Preparations for this year’s celebration were already at an advanced stage before the postponement was announced.
The Kingdom had planned to erect a number of traditional huts at its land in Kahokya, Kasese Municipality, where some of the cultural rituals associated with the Kingdom are performed.
The land, located in Erisa Kisabu’s Estates in Kahokya Cell, Kirembe Ward, was purchased by the government at about Shs 150 million.
Mr Monday Balyaghe, the chief architectural designer, said the site had already been levelled by Kasese Municipality and materials had been assembled.
‘All the local materials, including reeds, spear grass and nails, had been collected. The site was levelled by Kasese Municipality, and we had already earmarked where each traditional hut would be erected,’ he said.
Construction was expected to begin this week before the October 19 celebrations.
Palace fundraising
The combined celebration will also be used to launch a fresh fundraising drive for the construction of a new royal palace.
The Kingdom has operated without its main palace since November 2016, when a joint security operation at the royal palace in Kasese resulted in the destruction of the facility.
The Kingdom has since sought financial support from both its subjects and the central government to establish a new palace.
In December 2024, the King met President Museveni, during which several pledges concerning the Kingdom were discussed, including government support towards a new palace.
Among the pledges was the proposed purchase of the late Gen James Kazini’s hotel overlooking Kasese town and the deployment of a Uganda People’s Defence Forces engineering team to construct the palace.
However, Kingdom officials say the palace project has yet to materialise, although the government purchased the land on which the new palace is expected to be built.
The fundraising planned for November is therefore expected to renew the push for the construction of the royal residence.
The Kingdom has sought to play down reports circulating on social media suggesting that the Omusinga is seriously ill or incapacitated.
In early September, Kingdom spokesperson Geoffrey Barack Kanyonyi confirmed that the King had travelled to Turkey for a scheduled medical review.
Mr Baritazale said the current trip should not be interpreted as evidence that the King is critically ill, saying Omusinga’s doctors had recommended a follow-up review after his previous treatment.
‘His Majesty Omusinga is indeed in Turkey but not very sick. When Omusinga went for medication last year, as he was coming back after treatment, he was asked to go back after six months for a medical review. That is normal for anybody after treatment,’ Mr Baritazale said.
He added that some of the King’s appointments coincide with the original October 19 coronation anniversary date, making his attendance impossible.
‘He is still undergoing the medical review, and some of the appointments are close to October 19. That is why he said that we should postpone it and combine it with the Birthday Run on November 14. So he went for a medical review; it is not as serious as the public seems to be speculating,’ he said.