Kasese, Uganda — The Rwenzururu Cultural Leader, Charles Wesley Mumbere, has voiced his dissatisfaction with the ongoing restrictions imposed on him by security agencies. Mumbere expressed his concerns during a Royal Visit to Kasese Municipality on Tuesday, where he was barred from visiting certain areas within his kingdom.

Mumbere, who had initially planned to visit Rukoki Health Centre IV, Kilembe Mines Hospital, and various other locations around Kasese Municipality, was instead escorted directly to Rwenzori Square by the police. His anticipated tour and engagements were abruptly curtailed, much to his disappointment and that of his subjects.

Addressing a gathered crowd at Rwenzori Square, Mumbere questioned the necessity of such stringent measures within his kingdom.

He expressed frustration over the thwarted plans to engage with his subjects in other kingdoms and districts, highlighting the significant impact of these restrictions on his ability to fulfil his cultural and leadership duties.

Mumbere assured the crowd that he remains committed to addressing key issues affecting the district and maintaining the peace.

“I am determined to speak to those in authority about these matters. We cannot allow actions that disrupt the existing harmony in our region,” he stated firmly.

Mumbere told the crowd at Rwenzori Square that he is positioned to speak to those in authority regarding key matters affecting the district and he won’t accept any acts that can disrupt the existing peace.

Translation (“The kind of treatment we have been receiving ever since we were released seems to worsen every day, how do you expect me to appreciate the government for its development works yet I cannot be allowed to see these developments.”)

Without divulging details, Mumbere blamed a section of people within the Kingdom for trying to disrupt the functionality of the Kingdom.

Translated (“What I saw in Kasese town, the kind of welcoming and how it resembled what I saw in Bwera during my visit there last year, there was not even a single sign that people are waiting for their King, from now what I saw here, I knew that bad person is coming from Bwera.”)

Mumbere was also stopped from visiting Bunyangabu district last month. It is said that authorities from the Tooro Kingdom wrote to the minister of Gender questioning his intentions for the visit without officially communicating with the Tooro Kingdom in which the district administratively falls.

The King has also not had a good personal relationship with the State Minister of ICT and National Guidance Godfrey Kabyanga over the years.

Kasese Resident District Commissioner Lt. Joe Walusimbi says that unless there is a communication gap,  Mumbere has not been stopped from visiting any area within his Kingdom.