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�One outcome of this is that the work of diplomats in reporting back home would be more difficult. Many are those who would think twice before accepting those cocktail invitations, or even if they did, would not be as in a hurry to open their mouths, as would have been previously the case.� Julian Asange�s Wikileaks website report, which is causing so much consternation in the country, has caught the attention of the Vice President, John Dramani Mahama, who has warned that the exposure of the cables would make the work of foreign diplomats very difficult in the country. According to him, even though the diplomatic cables were confidential until the whistleblower�s website made it public, it has taught Ghanaians what would happen even in the most casual conversations they may have with foreign diplomats. �One outcome of this is that the work of diplomats in reporting back home would be more difficult. Many are those who would think twice before accepting those cocktail invitations, or even if they did would not be as in a hurry to open their mouths as would have been previously the case,� noted the Vice President. Mr. Drama Mahama was speaking at the 16th Ghana Journalists Association (GJA) awards night, which was held in Accra on Friday, on the theme: �Giving impetus to democracy and development: The role of investigative journalism.� According to the Vice President, the publication of the cables had created the impression as if Ghana was at war.�A cursory look at our media would seem like we are a nation at war. Newspapers and radio stations are lined up in the political trenches with their political allies or paymasters, throwing printed and verbal grenades, and taking pot shots at the �enemy lines.� Each side trying to outdo each other in inflicting maximum damage on the perceived �enemies�,� he noted. Touching on the theme, Mr. Mahama said Ghana had come a long way in its democratic dispensation, since the promulgation of the 1992 constitution, and that the road to democracy and national development had not been without its challenges. According to him, since independence, our ship of state has been battered by varying winds. �There are winds that have allowed us to make significant progress as a nation, and there are other times when the winds have not been that favourable. But, without a doubt, the winds of the 4th Republic have been very propitious, and have allowed us to make significant strides in building a country we can all be proud of, and that is currently touted as a model for democracy and rule of law, not only in Africa, but the world at large. � John Mahama noted that the repeal of criminal libel law, which criminalises speech, was an extra topping on the media feast the country had already started enjoying since the promulgation of the 1992 Constitution. �Our media has served us well as a nation. And we know there can be no true democracy without a free and independent media. However, platforms like this current one, allow us to reflect and review the role the media is playing in the advancement of our democracy and development.� The Vice President, who is a journalist himself, promised to ensure the strengthening of the National Media Commission (NMC), both in terms of resourcing and structure. He noted that the responsibility the Constitution had placed on the NMC was too heavy for a part time commission. �I believe in the constitution review exercise that we must look at making the NMC a permanent Commission like the CHRAJ, NCCE and EC. After 19 years of the Fourth Republic we must be approaching maturation in our media practice. There can be no excuse for mediocrity or mendacity in our media practice. �As the Fourth Estate of the realm, we must exercise our power and authority with the responsibility that must be associated with it. All power is accompanied by responsibility,� he noted, and commended all the awards winners for the feat they had achieved. The President of the GJA, Mr. Ransford Tetteh, on his part, warned that after 19 years of the Fourth Republic, the media no more had an excuse to be perpetrators of mediocrity, or have any justification to make infractions an occupational hazard for the practice of democracy.