Chairman of Suzuki Motor Corporation (who also was to become its CEO), Osamu Suzuki, 86, will reportedly step down from his future role with the company after its admission that it had been advertised falsifying fuel economy numbers through manipulating testing parameters, Bloomberg reports.
Mr Suzuki was meant to succeed current CEO Osamu Honda at the helm of the company to which he is the heir after marrying the grand daughter of founder Michio Suzuki. Osamu Suzuki will, however, remain chairman, and will take a 40 percent pay cut for the next six months after July.
In May 2016, Suzuki admitted to using unapproved testing methods to bump up their quoted fuel-economy numbers similar to what Mitsubishi was caught doing just a few weeks earlier and prompted intense government scrutiny over the workings within the domestic automotive industry.
Suzuki Motor Corp also said that it will implement changes to breed a more transparent corporate culture, one that promotes whistle blowing when a suspicious activities are carried out.
Toshihiro Suzuki told reporters during a press conference Wednesday in Tokyo: “Suzuki has a top-down culture and it’s been difficult for voices from lower down to go to the management. Now we are working to improve the corporate culture.”
Meanwhile, Chairman Osamu Suzuki declined to reveal the company’s next CEO, he did say that the decision will is now narrowed to the company’s four directors. The decision will be announced after the annual shareholder’s meeting on June 29th.
