Accra, Jan. 14, GNA - The Editors Forum Ghana (EFG) on Wednesday congratulated President John Evans Atta Mills and Vice President John Mahama on their assumption of the highest office of the land. The group also congratulated Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, presidential candidate of the New Patriotic Party (NPP) as well as the other candidates who offered themselves to contest for the leadership of the country, for helping to grow Ghana's democracy. A statement signed by Ms Ajoa Yeboah-Afari, Interim Chairperson of the EFG, said the forum was particularly happy that all the presidential candidates who participated in the EFG's peace symposium on October 31, 2008, personally demonstrated a commitment to peace as they had assured the country at the symposium and on other platforms prior to the election.

The statement said it was evident that the vast majority of the general public showed and continued to show a commitment to peace and they deserved commendation. It said it was gratifying that reading and listening publics had been expressing their satisfaction with the way the media went about their work during the election and the hard work and effort journalists made to provide comprehensive information on the elections to the public.

The statement said it had come to the Forum's attention that serious lapses, however, occurred in the coverage of the elections. Even though these were not many they were of such gravity that given the highly charged political atmosphere they had the potential to bring about tragic consequences. It said a case in point was the alleged incitement to violence on one radio station in Accra as well as counter calls by other stations. The EFG condemned such practices that not only endangered lives, but also tainted all the good works of the media and risked alienating even those who had helped champion media plurality and press freedom. The Forum also reminded all media practitioners, especially private media owners and those in decision-making positions, that they had a collective and crucial role to play and a responsibility to ensure that the nation continued to enjoy peace. 14 Jan. 09