The palace raid and the king’s incarceration followed clashes between his guards and the police, which left 14 officers dead. By last evening, an uneasy calm reigned over Kasese town and business remained slow.
In columns, policemen and UPDF officers patrolled the town. From their verandahs and windows, residents eyed them suspiciously. On many streets, traders huddled in groups trying to make sense of what happened over the last five days. A section of Kisanga market, the biggest in Kasese town, remained closed.
KING’S ARMY
After a tour of the palace, police spokesman Andrew Felix Kaweesi told journalists yesterday afternoon that Mumbere had built a combative force, similar to a national army.
“You can see that the huts are built in such a way that they form a ring around the palace. And inside the huts, there are trenches which can be used to hide weapons and for protection of fighters. This was an organized force,” Kaweesi said.
Kaweesi said some of the deceased fighters hailed from DR Congo, introducing an external element in the conflict. He said bodies of people who cannot be identified would be buried in a mass grave after consultation with district officials.
On their part, kingdom officials and political heavyweights associated with the Rwenzururu were still groping for answers regarding what happens next for Rwenzururu kingdom.
Christopher Kibanzanga, the minister of state for Agriculture and a brother to Mumbere, told The Observer on phone on Wednesday that several meetings had been held between the government and Rwenzururu officials to find a way forward.
“I am optimistic that our institution will not be abolished,” Kibanzanga said trying to downplay rumours doing rounds in Kasese that the kingdom may be no more soon.
According to Clarence Bwambale, the kingdom spokesman, the institution had not decided the next course of action after Mumbere’s arrest.