Uganda buries Tooro’s King

FORT PORTAL, Uganda (NBC, KYMA) - In Western Uganda Saturday a funeral was held for a monarch who ascended the throne as an infant in 1995.

The Tooro Kingdom's King Oyo Nyimba died last month at the age of 34 due to cancer. His death has started a succession dispute which has rocked the royal family.

Today's funeral inside of a cathedral in Fort Portal, near the border of Congo, concludes a 9-day mourning period.

Oyo was unmarried and the elders of the kingdom of Tooro say he never declared an heir before his death.

However some in the kingdom say he had a son out of wedlock, that son has not been publicly identified leading to claims there are at least two possible heirs of the king.

Earlier this week, it was announced the elders chose a prince who has been working as a journalist to succeed Oyo.

A decision that traditionalists praise but the royal family rebukes.

Oyo's sister, and Princess of Tooro, spoke at her brother's funeral today about his diagnosis.

King Oyo was only 3 when he was crowned in 1995 after his father's death, he was guided by regents of the kingdom until his 18th birthday.

Oyo held the unofficial title of the world's youngest king.

Traditional monarchs are loved in Tooro but don't wield any formal power in the east African countries.