Buganda Kingdom Katikkiro (prime minister) Charles Peter Mayiga on Friday dismissed speculation about Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi’s II’s health and said that he (the Kabaka) is “having challenges related to allergies that cause him breathing difficulties.”
“On Tuesday April 13, 2021, we celebrated the 66th birthday of our Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II and thanked God for the long life. Those who followed the events on TV and social media noticed that the Kabaka’s disposition was different from that that his subjects are used to. We all face ailments from time to time. In the Kabaka’s case, the challenges are related to allergies that cause him breathing difficulties, especially when he wears a mask or face shield. I would like to urge you to disregard the rumours on social media that the Kabaka had been poisoned. They are totally wrong, baseless and unfounded. They cause unnecessary anxiety,” Mr Mayiga said in a televised address on Friday afternoon.
Katikiro Mayiga and the Kabaka.His statement came just hours after the Kabaka and the Nnabagereka (queen) Sylvia Nagginda on Friday received their first dose of the vaccine against Covid-19 at the Lubiri (palace) in Kireka, Kampala.
Photos circulated on different social media platforms by kingdom officials on Friday morning showed the king and his queen being vaccinated, hours after he was on Thursday, seen shopping at a busy supermarket in Ntinda, a city suburb, following a wave of rumours about his health.
“Ssabasajja Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi II and the Nnabagereka Sylvia Nagginda Luswata were vaccinated against COVID-19 at the Lubiri in Kireka today,” senior lawyer, David F.K. Mpanga, who doubles as the Minister for Special Assignments in the Kabaka’s office tweeted on Friday.
