Queen Best Kemigisa Akiiki (born 1967) is the
Queen Mother of the
Tooro Kingdom, based in
Fort Portal city,
Uganda. She is mother to Rukirabasaija Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Amooti
Rukidi IV
Rukirabasaija Omukama Oyo Nyimba Kabamba Iguru Rukidi IV, King Oyo, is the reigning Omukama of Tooro, in Uganda. He was born on 16 April 1992 to King Patrick David Mathew Kaboyo Olimi III and Queen Best Kemigisa Kaboyo. Three and half years l ...
, the reigning
Omukama {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009
Omukama: often translated as "king of kings", (O)Mukama means in Bantu languages, Bantu (Banyoro-, Batoro- and other languages) something like "superior milkman/milkbringer". The title "Omukama" is used in the regi ...
of Tooro.
Early life
She is the daughter of Prince (Omubiito) Mujungu, of the
Batuku
The Batuque is a music and dance genre from Cape Verde.
As a music genre
As a music genre, the ''batuque'' is characterized by having an ''andante'' tempo, a 6/8 or 3/4 measure and traditionally it is just melodic, i.e., it is just sung, it h ...
clan, of Rwebisengo in Present day
Ntoroko district. At the time of her birth, Ntoroko was a county of Kabarole district before curving it around 1974 into
Bundibugyo district alongside Bwamba County. She was educated at Kahinju Primary School, Mpanga Senior Secondary School and
Kyebambe Girls School, all in
Fort Portal city,
Tooro Kingdom. She is the Founder and Patron of the Tooro Women's Development Association and a co-founder of the
African Queens and Women Cultural Leaders Network The African Queens and Women Cultural Leaders Network (AQWCLN) is a voluntary network of female cultural leaders across Africa that seeks to advocate for the advancement and improve the lives of women and girls across the continent.
History
The A ...
.
Queen Best Kemigisa is a passionate about issues that affect girls and women in Africa. She organises Hakyooto events in various parts of Africa to education, entertain and empower people so that they are able to live their best lives.
Queen Mother
Queen Best Akiiki was widowed on 3 August 1995 when
King Patrick Olimi Kaboyo II died suddenly. She was one of the guardians of her son, the new King and one of a team of regents who helped rule Tooro until he reached his majority in 2010.
Her daughter, Omubiitokati (Princess) Ruth Nsemere Komuntale, was married to African-American businessman Christopher Thomas, but they have since divorced.
Controversies
Queen Best took part in the controversial Kings and Sultans of Africa Forum set up by the then
Libyan leader,
Muammar Gaddafi
Muammar Muhammad Abu Minyar al-Gaddafi, . Due to the lack of standardization of transcribing written and regionally pronounced Arabic, Gaddafi's name has been romanized in various ways. A 1986 column by ''The Straight Dope'' lists 32 spellin ...
.
She allegedly evicted 60-year-old John Businge from disputed land with the support of armed members of the King's security force.
Queen Best brought charges of fraud against a man accused of stealing around $60,000 US from her, money supposed to be used to register her Toro Women's Organisation with the United Nations. Moses Kyeyune was convicted in May 2013 and sentenced to five years in prison.
She was also involved in a legal fight with a
lawyer
A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...
, Bob Kasango who she claimed had defrauded her of a large sum of money.
References
External links
Official website of Queen of TooroOfficial website of Tooro Kingdom
Living people
1967 births
Ugandan traditional rulers and monarchs
African queen mothers
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