Musings From Abroad

Not Happening: Twitter CEO debunks stories of Elon Musk joining company board

Published

3 years ago

April 11, 2022

Stories of billionaire Tesla Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk being on the board of Twitter after purchasing 73.5 million shares or 9.2 percent of the company’s common stock to become its largest shareholder, has been debunked by the social media company CEO Parag Agrawal.

In a statement on Sunday, Agrawal said though Musk is the firm’s biggest shareholder, he has decided not to join its board.

“Elon has decided not to join our board. Elon’s appointment to the board was to become officially effective 4/9, but Elon shared that same morning he will no longer be joining the board. I believe this is for the best.

“Elon is our biggest shareholder and we will remain open to his input,” Agrawal said.

The statement was a reversal of a previous statement barely a week ago, by the Twitter CEO who had announced that the billionaire tech entrepreneur had been appointed to join the Twitter board.

Agrawal had announced on Tuesday that Musk would be joining the board, describing him as “a passionate believer and intense critic of the service which is exactly what we need”.

Musk himself had tweeted that he was “Looking forward to working with Parag & Twitter board to make significant improvements to Twitter in coming months!”

But that is no longer happening as Musk has pulled out of joining the board without preferring any reason.

In less than two weeks since his purchase of the Twitter shares, Musk who is known for his outspoken nature, has polarised opinions, with the earlier announcement that he was joining the board sparking misgiving among some Twitter employees.

The SpaceX founder and Tesla CEO’s decision not to join the Twitter board came after he tweeted on Saturday asking whether the social media network was “dying” and to call out users such as singer Justin Bieber, who are highly followed but rarely post in the platform.

“Most of these ‘top’ accounts tweet rarely and post very little content. Is Twitter dying?” Musk wrote, captioning a list of the 10 profiles with the most followers which includes himself at number eight, with 81 million followers.

Most of these “top” accounts tweet rarely and post very little content.

Is Twitter dying? https://t.co/lj9rRXfDHE

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) April 9, 2022

Related Topics:Elon Musk Featured Shares Twitter

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Musings From Abroad

Brazilian meatpacker JBS invests $2.5 billion in Nigeria, builds six facilities

Published

5 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Brazilian meatpacker JBS says it has inked a memorandum of understanding with the Nigerian government for a $2.5 billion investment plan that will include the construction of six new plants in the African nation.

Three of the plants would deal in poultry, two in beef, and one in pork, according to a statement from JBS.

In accordance with the memorandum of understanding, JBS stated that it would develop a five-year investment plan in Nigeria, which would include budget estimates, feasibility studies, and an action plan for the development of the local supply chain.

The Nigerian government would then guarantee the sanitary, regulatory, and economic conditions required for the project’s viability, JBS continued.

Musings From Abroad

China’s Xi meets with Morocco’s Crown Prince

Published

5 hours ago

November 22, 2024

Ifeoluwa Dada

Morocco’s official media reports that Chinese President, Xi Jinping, visited Morocco briefly on Thursday.

According to Morocco’s MAP, Crown Prince Moulay El Hassan welcomed Xi in Casablanca. The visit demonstrated the close ties of camaraderie, collaboration, and solidarity between the Moroccan and Chinese peoples, it said.

China’s official broadcaster, CCTV, said that Xi and Hassan had a “cordial conversation” at the airport after being received by the Crown Prince and Moroccan Prime Minister Aziz Akhannouch.

After attending the G20 Summit in Brazil, Xi paid the visit.

In recent years, China has increased its investments in Morocco’s rail and infrastructure. Morocco is desirable for Chinese electric car battery manufacturers because of its proximity to Europe, free trade agreements with important EU and US markets, and an established automotive sector.

Morocco was chosen by Chinese EV battery company Gotion High Tech in June to establish Africa’s first gigafactory, which will cost $1.3 billion in total.