Carlos Ghosn was fired by Nissan and resigned from Renault this spring. Mitsubishi shareholders approved his removal on Friday.
Carlos Ghosn is out of his last job: Mitsubishi Motors Corp. shareholders voted to approve his removal as chairman of the company. Ghosn was the head of the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance until he was arrested last fall on charges of financial misconduct.
The vote took place in a two-hour general meeting of shareholders at a Tokyo hotel. Mitsubishi was added to the alliance when Nissan Motor Co. bought 34% of the company when it was at the precipice of financial ruin. The move was made at Ghosn’s urging and design.
Osamu Masuko, who was reappointed chairman, promised to strengthen governance and transparency and monitor wrongdoing. More outsiders will check executive appointments and compensation, according to the Associated Press.
Nissan shareholders ousted Ghosn – who maintains his innocence – in April as chairman. He later resigned from France-based Renault SA.
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Ghosn led Nissan for two decades after saving it from near-bankruptcy. He served as chairman at Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi. He has been charged with falsifying financial reports in underreporting retirement compensation and with breach of trust in having Nissan shoulder investment losses and in diverting Nissan money for personal gain.
Renault Chairman Jean Dominique Senard was voted to Chairman of the Alliance by Mitsubishi shareholders.
The Mitsubishi shareholders also approved the appointment of Renault’s chairman Jean-Dominique Senard to replace Ghosn as the leader of the Alliance. Renault owns 43% of Nissan while Nissan owns 15% of Renault.
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Nissan, which based in the port city of Yokohama, and Renault have been stalled in an uneasy state in the wake of the failed merger between Fiat Chrysler and Renault. While demands by the French government were initially thought to be the reason the deal was scuttled, it turns out Nissan also played a role in it.
Nissan said late Thursday two Renault executives will be on the committees. Renault earlier said it would abstain in that vote, and the greater representation promised on the committees may gain Renault’s approval, AP noted.
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Renault said in a statement that it welcomed Nissan’s decision but did not say how it planned to vote. “The agreement reached on Renault’s presence in Nissan’s new governance confirms the spirit of dialogue and mutual respect that exists within the alliance,” it said.