The opposition People’s Front for Freedom (PFF) has mourned the death of Tooro King Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, calling on the government to improve cancer treatment and strengthen the country’s health sector.

King Oyo died last Thursday, August 27, at the age of 34 while undergoing cancer treatment in the United States.

Speaking to the media at the PFF headquarters along Katonga Road in Kampala, the party chairman, Lulume Bayiga, described the late King Oyo as a young, vibrant and development-oriented leader with a strong desire to see Tooro Kingdom and Uganda achieve social and economic transformation.

Bayiga said the King’s death should serve as a wake-up call for the government to strengthen cancer treatment and other specialised health services in Uganda.

He argued that improved cancer treatment facilities in the country could have helped save the life of the young monarch, while also benefiting many other Ugandans who travel abroad in search of specialised medical care.

Bayiga extended condolences to the people of Tooro Kingdom, the royal family and all those mourning the death of King Oyo.

Meanwhile, Tooro Kingdom has submitted a proposed event-management budget of Shs1.724 billion for the funeral and burial of the late King to the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development.

Preparations for the burial are progressing at the royal burial grounds in Karambi I Village, as the kingdom awaits the repatriation of the King’s remains from the United States, where he died.

King Oyo was 34 years old at the time of his death.

By Charles Katabalwa