Last week, March 23, 2023 exactly, Award winning broadcaster and media guru, Soni Irabor clocked 71.
Analysing the dynamics of age and professional life, it is particularly notable that Irabor has immensely contributed to Nigeria’s media growth in his capacity as a broadcaster of repute, communications consultant, speech trainer, talk show host, advertising guru and media manager.
Soni Irabor, who grew up in Benin, had his youth in a fairly large family. Few years ago, he said about his youth: “I went to school in Benin and I enjoyed it mainly because I had all my friends and peers. We grew up in a lively environment.
“I come from a fairly large family and we never displayed wealth. This is because we are not from a wealthy family, but I say with all pride that we were not poor either. Even if we did not have money, we were not desperately in need of money…”
Before he switched to media practice, Irabor worked with the then Nigerian Prison Service. Talking of his experience in the place, he reportedly said: “I left the place because that was not what I wanted but working there made me see life differently. I appreciated life differently because I saw powerful people reduced to nothing either because of their guilt or they were framed”.
Although he had been romancing media, particularly radio and television since 1974, he fully got employed in 1977. According to him: “The media had always been part of my life. I ventured into the media because I wanted to be a media person”.