Osita Izunaso At 60: When Brilliance Meets Compassion

By Kehinde Olaosebikan There are brilliant men. There are also compassionate men. It is rare to find both in full measure in one man. In Distinguished Senator Osita Izunaso, currently representing Imo West in the Senate, you find both. That is why at 60, he is worth celebrating.If you have followed the political trajectory of Nigeria in the last three decades, you cannot miss the steady, cerebral presence of Osita Izunaso. In a political space often defined by noise and drama, he has remained that rare politician who does not need to fight to win respect. His weapon has been his brain. As the pioneer National Organising Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, he brought intellect to organization at a very critical time in the life of today’s ruling party. While others were playing politics of noise and acrimony, Izunaso was playing politics of structure, strategy and stability. He organized, he strategized, he stabilized. He gave the party a thinking head. Those who worked with him then will tell you – he was calm, methodical, and brilliant. He did not just occupy office: he defined it. That same brilliance was evident when he was appointed Chairman of the National Automotive Design and Development Council, NADDC. Many saw it as a mere board appointment. Osita saw it as a policy platform. He brought fresh thinking to Nigeria’s automotive policy, pushing for local content, for industrial growth, for a future where Nigeria does not just import vehicles but builds them. He left the Council better than he met it. And today, in the 10th Senate, as the Distinguished Senator representing Imo West Senatorial District and Chairman, Senate Committee on Capital Market, he has brought that same brilliance to lawmaking. In a chamber where many compete for attention, Osita competes with ideas. Currently, the Nigerian Exchange Group is ranking as the world’s best performing equity market in U.S. dollar terms, delivering massive year-to-date returns (around 67%) and surpassing major global like Korea, courtesy of Senator Izunaso’s brilliantly and doggedly achieved legislations for the Nigeria Stock Exchange. The success in the stock market remains one of the greatest feats of the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. It is unprecedented. He is prepared. He is cerebral. He is respected across party lines — by friends and even by opponents. He is not the loudest voice in the Red Chamber, but he is certainly among the most listened to. That is the power of brilliance that is steady.But if brilliance gave him a platform, compassion gave him a purpose. And that is where Osita truly stands apart from many in public life.Long before it became fashionable to talk about inclusion, Osita had already made Persons with Disabilities the centre of his public service. Through his Kpakpando Foundation, he built what many politicians have failed to build – a genuine bridge between power and the vulnerable. Kpakpando is not a foundation on paper. It is a foundation on ground. Over the years, it has provided wheelchairs, scholarships, business grants, medical support and, more importantly, dignity and voice to over 5,000 vulnerable Nigerians, especially Persons with Disabilities. He did not just give them charity; he gave them confidence. He did not just remember them during elections; he remembered them every day. They don’t actually need to come from his senatorial district or his state. Senator Osita Izunaso’s philanthropy knows no tribe or religion. He gives to all with love and hope. That compassion is always on full display on his birthdays since the birth of Kpakpando Foundation on October 30, 2005. For his 60th, he went to the correctional centre and secured freedom for 12 inmates who had been awaiting trial. He organized free medical outreach for 700 constituents — men, women, young and old — who otherwise could not afford healthcare. He celebrated his birthday by giving others a reason to celebrate. That is Osita for you — brilliant in the head, big in the heart. He has turned intelligence into service and service into impact.Socially, he remains the same delightful company — warm, amiable, witty, pleasant. Those of us who have known him for long, know him as the humourist in the house. That humour has not left him; it has only matured with wisdom.At 50, I wrote about a smart chap. At 60, I write about a complete statesman- smarter, steadier, more strategic, more compassionate, and more humane. While I wish my brother and friend, Distinguished Senator Osita Bonaventure Izunaso, OFR, Ph.D. a happy 60th birthday anniversary, I pray again as I did 10 years ago: May God give us children like Osita.Omo bi Osita lo wu mi. Happy 60th Birthday, the Great Kpakpando. May God grant you long life, sound health, greater wisdom and higher glory. May your next decade be more impactful than your last.Congratulations!•Olaosebikan is Chief Consultant, Midas Communications Ltd.