The Bito type of state, in contrast…

The Bito type of state, in contrast with that of the Hima, is established in Bunyoro, which for several centuries is the dominant political power in the region.

Bito immigrants displace the influential Hima and secure power for themselves as a royal clan, ruling over Hima pastoralists and Hutu agriculturalists alike.

No rigid caste lines divide Bito society.

The weakness of the Bito ideology is that, in theory, it grants every Bito clan member royal status and with it the eligibility to rule.

Although some of these ambitions might be fulfilled by the Bunyoro king's (omuka-ma) granting his kin offices as governors of districts, there is always the danger of a coup d'etat or secession by overambitious relatives.

Thus, in Bunyoro periods of political stability and expansion are interrupted by civil wars and secessions.