Izunaso@60: A consunmate politician, lawyer and philantropist

By Chukwudi EnekweChi There are very few men who accomplish so much in different spheres of life at almost the same time, young age and more importantly with distinction as Senator Osita Izunaso. I begin the story of narrating the journey of Distinguished Senator Bonaventure Osita Izunaso with the preceding line because he is a man who has in the last 33 years or thereabout oscillated from journalism practice, to sports administration, businessman, politician, legal practitioner and was able to cap it all as a philanthropist.

He has used his Kpakpando Foundation founded in 2006 to impact positively on 5000 vulnerable people from across the country. He has also supported them through the award of scholarships, medical outreach programmes and entrepreneurial skills development. His compassion for the sick, vulnerable and disabled people had also inspired him to play a key advocacy role in the establishment of the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities and this has garnered him numerous honours from within and outside Nigeria.

Though an accomplished federal lawmaker having being a member of the House of Representatives between 2003 and 2007 for the Ohaji/Egbema/Oguta/Oru west federal constituency, he has also devoted considerable attention to Nigeria’s sports growth and development, by playing a key advisory role to then Nigeria’s Minister of Youths and Sports Development between 1995 and 1998 and which culminated in the victory of Nigeria’s men Football Olympic team.

Nigeria won a Gold Medal at the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games. As a member of the House of Representatives from 2003 to 2007, he was the chairman of the House committee on Housing and Urban Development and in 2007 he was elected a senator for Imo West senatorial district (Orlu zone), and later returned to the senate for the second time in 2023. He is presently the chairman of the Senate committee on Capital Markets and Institutions.

As a lawmaker at the highest level in the country Senator Izunaso has always advocated for the interest of the ordinary people, but most especially people with disability and the vulnerable in the society. Born on October 30 1966 in the commercial city of Onitsha Anambra state, Izunaso has attained several academic feats including a bachelor’s Degree in English, Postgraduate Diploma in Journalism, Barrister-at-law BL, Bachelor of Law LLB (First class) LLM and a PhD in Law.

As a lawyer he has made a significant impact among his peers by advancing the frontiers of knowledge in the law profession. For instance, Dr. Izunaso was a speaker at the Nigerian Bar Association National Conference on Tuesday 25th August, 2026 in Port Harcourt Rivers state. He spoke on the theme: Making Nigeria’s new tax reforms work in practice to 25,000 (twenty-five thousand) lawyers from all parts of the country and beyond.

It is also worthy of note that that the conference had the following personages in attendance: His Excellency George Weah former Liberian president, Justice Amina Augie (rtd) of the Supreme Court, Former vice president of Nigeria Prof. Yemi Osinbajo SAN, former governor of Rivers state, Rt. Hon Rotimi Chibike Amaechi, one of Nigeria’s foremost lawyers, Chief OnyeChi Ikpeazu SAN, Chief Femi Falana SAN and other legal luminaries.

He delivered a lecture with the to