Investigative journalist becomes CRAN’s first female vice president

Juliana Francis

The Deputy Crime Editor of the Vanguard Newspaper, Mrs. Evelyn Usman, has emerged as the first female Vice President of the Crime Reporters Association of Nigeria (CRAN) after a keenly contested election held on Friday at Ikeja, Lagos State.

Usman defeated her opponent, Mr. Tony Okpe with 25 votes, thus pushing her to become the first female Vice President of CRAN.

Usman has carried out many investigative reports, including investigative pieces that had her daring into the world of teenage cult members to speak with them, and unraveling the scam in the police equipment fund.

Before now, Usman has served in different positions in the association, intentionally gathering knowledge and experiences on how to pilot the affairs of the organisation at the center.

Since the inception of the association, no woman had ever been voted into the position of the President or the Vice president. Usman, on Friday, successfully broke the jinx.

According to some of the women in the association, the victory of Usman was a victory for them. They hinted that comes the next election, women would be targeting the imperial position of the President.

The new President of the association is now Mr. Lekan Olabulo of the Tribune Newspaper. Other members of the executives are Mr. Niran Odufayo of Radio Nigeria as the General Secretary, Mrs. Chiemelie Ezeobi of ThisDay Newspaper as Treasurer; Ismaila Oguntade of Leadership as financial secretary; Adaobi Obiechina of NTA as Assistant Secretary and Mr. Taiwo Jimoh of New Telegraph as the PRO/Auditor.

The election, which was held on the 6th of May 2022, was conducted by the Lagos State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists led by its Chairman, Mr. Leye Ajayi, and other executive members of the council.

Olabulo in his inaugural speech promised to facilitate both local and international training for members to sharpen their skills to be at par with trending social media devices for better performance.

He said the association would contribute to national security issues by always drawing attention to the relevant authorities and suggesting solutions to security problems.

Since the welfare of every organisation was one of the key contributors to its successes, he noted that members would enjoy the best under his tenure, particularly in assisting those with health challenges.

Olabulo assured the members that the secretariat of CRAN, which is in a dilapidated state, will be given a facelift during his administration. He, however, enjoined those who lost in the election to join his team to work together for the uplift of the association.

He also congratulated the electoral committee headed by Mr. Frank Oshanughor for the free, fair, and credible exercise.

Since the announcement of the new executives, congratulatory messages had been coming in from different sectors of Nigeria.

Among those that sent in their congratulatory message is the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba He congratulated Olabulo and others.

The IGP noted that the new officials were individuals who had dignified and distinguished themselves in their various media fora, adding that the election was a recognition of their years of selfless service and commitment to value.

He equally appreciated the outgoing officials led by the immediate past president, Sunday Odita, of the Guardian Newspaper, for their labour at maintaining a friendly mien while carrying out their statutory responsibilities.

The IGP while assuring of his administration’s commitment to leave no stone unturned in the fight against crimes and criminality in the country, urges the new officials to work collectively and closely with the Nigeria Police Force in ensuring a balanced reportage while the Force collaborates with CRAN for a safe, secured, and peaceful country in general.