Will the real mother of Prince Semekookiro please stand up?

For decades, clouds of uncertainty swirled above the Kabaka’s Palace on Mengo Hill, Kampala. Nothing disturbs a monarch like a looming power vacuum because none of the princes qualify to take a place in the throne long after he is gone.

Now the palace is no longer heavy with anxiety.

For the first time since Kabaka Ronald Muwenda Mutebi of the Baganda ascended to the throne 19 years ago, the Kingdom of Buganda has a prince who is, according to centuries-old tradition, eligible for the throne.

Kabaka Mutebi got a second son, Prince Richard Semekookiro, in July last year. But behind the high palace walls lay a secret. Six months later, in a 39-word statement, the kingdom’s Prime Minister (Katikkiro) informed subjects of Prince Semekookiro’s birth. That was on January 17.

In tune with modernity, the announcement was posted on the kingdom’s website.

But there was the small matter of fidelity now that the Kabaka is a Christian. Since the prince’s mother is not Queen Sylvia Nagginda of Buganda, the matter has stirred some debate on the morality of the king and the place of royal traditions in the digital era.

After the birth of Prince Semakookiro every media house wanted to be the first to reveal the identity of the prince’s mother. In the process, major gaffes would be made.

The state-owned paper, Bukedde, which publishes in Luganda and is very popular in Buganda, took the lead in the search. On January 25, Bukedde and its sister English publication New Vision published photos of Rose Nansikombi terming her as the prince’s mother, called the muzaana in Luganda.

The Prime Minister of Buganda denounced the photos as fake. And, by the end of that day, it had emerged that the photos were of Barbera Kirabo, a 20-year-old who called a press conference to announce that she was suing the Vision Group, which owns the newspapers, for Ush500m (Sh17.9m) for defaming her.

On January 27, both Bukedde and New Vision published apologies, and on top of that, published different photos, which they said were of the real prince’s mother this time round. But the show was far from over.

The kingdom’s Prime Minister dismissed the pictures, again, as fake. And the next day, both newspapers published apologies from Vision Group’s CEO, Robert Kabushenga, to the king for causing him “personal embarrassment”.

The comedy of errors also included the racy Red Pepper reporting that the Queen had fled the country upon hearing the announcement of the new prince’s birth. It however turned out she had been out of the country on official duty, and had since returned.

Certainly, Ugandans were not going to have dull moments.

“He cheated on the queen,” wrote one Arthur Mondranny Bantu on Facebook.

“The Kabaka made the right decision and he does not belong to any religion. He is a traditional leader and believes in his culture. He is entitled to get many more kids as long as he wants,” responded Sam Mayanja.

Bukedde then printed what it said was a version of the king’s marriage vows to the Queen on their wedding day in August 1999. The tabloid also quoted a retired bishop of the Anglican Church asking the king to explain to the church where he had made his marriage vows, and why he had sired a child out of wedlock.

Responding to critics, Buganda Kingdom spokesperson Charles Peter Mayiga questioned the raging “holier than thou” attitude, reminding the Kabaka’s critics of Jesus Christ’s maxim of “let he who has no sin cast the first stone.”

“The Kabaka,” he added, “has a duty to perpetuate the Kintu Dynasty. This is only possible by begetting Buganda princes.”