CTV names Omar Sachedina as Lisa LaFlamme's successor as chief news anchor and senior editor of national newscast

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      A Vancouver-born journalist has moved into a top position at Canada's most-watched national newscast.

      Omar Sachedina, 39, will become the chief correspondent and senior editor of CTV News on September 5.

      He will replace Lisa LaFlamme, a 58-year-old veteran journalist whose contract was not renewed.

      Sachedina attended Port Moody secondary school before going on to study political science and philosophy at McGill University. He has a master's degree in journalism from Columbia University.

      Over his career, Sachedina has covered federal elections, Parliament, international summits, and  the war in Ukraine.

      He was raised in an Ismaili family that left Uganda and came to Canada. Sachedina is one of a growing number of Ismailis who've become high-profile journalists.

      Others include CTV Vancouver anchor Nafeesa Karim, CBC foreign correspondent Salimah Shivji, CBC reporter Zahra Premji, former Breakfast Television host Riaz Meghji, Overstory Media CEO Farhan Mohamed, and MSNBC host Ali Velshi. Many Ismaili families moved to Canada to escape turmoil in East Africa; often, they trace their ancestral family roots back to the western Indian state of Gujarat.

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