Obuasi (Ash), April 29, GNA - Panellists at a round-table on 93The state of democracy in Ghana and the media", at Obuasi, have given high marks to the media for the important role it was playing to advance the nation's democratic governance. They, however, called for more circumspection, saying that, whatever they put in the public domain should always help to sustain the national peace, stability and cohesion.

The programme formed part of activities lined up by the National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) to mark the 11th national constitutio= n week celebration. It brought together a cross-section of the people in the municipality, including assembly members, heads of department, the media, religious group= s and chiefs.

Nana Owusu-Achaw Brimpong, former District Chief Executive for Adansi South said the country's democracy had witnessed significant improvement over the years as a result of the watchdog role the media was playing. He, however, called on the National Media Commission (NMC) to ensure high journalistic standards by enforcing professional ethics.

He described as unhealthy the situation where some media practitioners tend to show little or no regard for the ethics of their profession. Venerable Garnet Prah Arthur, the Archdeacon of the Obuasi Archdeaconr= y of the Anglican Church, could not hide his admiration for the media, and said 93the Ghanaian media is one of the best in the world." It should continue to be courageous and expose all acts in the society that could potentially undermine the Constitution, he added.

Mr Malik Bin Ibrahim, a Journalist and Social Commentator, said the repeal of the criminal libel law had contributed immensely to the vibrancy of the media. Mr Alexander Ackon, the Municipal Chief Executive, appealed to the media to always respect the core values of the society in the performance o= f the duties.