Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn arrested on charges of corruption

Guwahati: Carlos Ghosn, the chairman of Nissan Motor Co Ltd, is arrested in a corruption case on Monday. The Japanese automaker said that Ghosn had used company money for personal use and an investigation was already underway to prove the charges against him.

The very news of the arrest of Ghosn has come as a shock for people in Japan. As Ghosn is a rare foreign top executive, he is being well regarded and also is the person behind turning Nissan around from near bankruptcy. Not only of Nissan, Ghosn is also the chairman and chief executive of France’s Renault.

It is for several months that the Japanese automaker had been investigating possible improper practices of Ghosn and Representative Director Greg Kelly. The company had been fully cooperating with investigators for bringing out the accurate results and finally, it unveiled the person behind the corruption.

The allegations are that the Nissan director used the company money for personal use. Nissan, in a statement, says, “The investigation showed that over many years both Ghosn and Kelly have been reporting compensation amounts in the Tokyo Stock Exchange securities report that were less than the actual amount, in order to reduce the disclosed amount of Carlos Ghosn’s compensation.”

The statement also added that CEO Hiroto Saikawa would propose to the Nissan board to remove Ghosn and Kelly.

With the ouster of Ghosn, 64, the future of the Japanese motor company is in doubt at present as it was being personally shaped by Carlos Ghosn. He had also pledged to consolidate with a deeper tie-up, before eventually stepping back from its operational leadership.

The motor company further says details of the matters will be briefed to the media on Monday evening only. However, the spokesmen for Renault and the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Motors alliance did not immediately return calls and messages.

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