Former President Jerry John Rawlings has reiterated his support and confidence in the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Air Ghana, Mr. Marwan Traboulsi after the latter was accused to be involved in a dubious contract deal by leading member of the governing NPP, Kennedy Agyapong.

According to the Member of Parliament for Assin Central, the former President and his wife Nana Konadu Agyeman Rawlings are using their influence to shield Traboulsi Marwan’s ‘dubious’ airport cargo contract from being reviewed, as the said contract is a rip-off of the Republic of Ghana and has been running since July 2012 when it was signed.

He also claimed that Mr, Traboulsi was abusing the said contract with national security officials at the airport looking on helplessly because of the ‘powers’ behind the businessman.

The outspoken MP further asserted that the aviation businessman was in the habit of “throwing his weight” around the Airport and being arrogant to even national security officials to the extent of them being denied entry to search his Cargo yard “because he is a crony to the former President Rawlings and his wife”.

But responding to allegations while addressing some party faithful at the Arts Centre on Saturday, Mr. Rawlings, not mincing his words, described Marwan Traboulsi as a “brilliant and efficient personality who turned around cargo handling operations at the airport.”

“I will defend him any day as one of the most efficient and brilliant minds that I have come across. He was one of the first to go into large-scale farming and the export of pineapples during the revolution. Others did the same but his operations were so efficient that he was doing much better than some of the others. He later secured an aircraft that not only exported his produce but that of other farmers,” Flt Lt Rawlings said.

“Traboulsi later left farming and diversified into cargo handling where his efficiency won him a bid to manage cargo handling at the airport. “His efficiency level was so high we could beat South Africa by 30 minutes in cargo handling operations. Today some want to spoil the names of good people just like we do in our party,” the former President stated.