Former Nissan Chief Executive Hiroto Saikawa told a Japanese court Wednesday he believed the compensation for his predecessor Carlos Ghosn was too low by international standards, and so he supported Ghosn's retirement packages to prevent him from leaving.
Mr. Ghosn had outstanding abilities and achievements, Saikawa said, testifying in Tokyo District Court in the criminal trial of Greg Kelly, a former senior executive at Nissan Motor Co.
We needed to prepare for Mr. Ghosn's eventual retirement to keep him motivated and to have him continue to work for Nissan, he said in answer to a prosecutor's questioning.
Saikawa worked closely with Ghosn and succeeded Ghosn as CEO in 2017. After Ghosn was arrested in November 2018, he denounced Ghosn.