Carlos Ghosn’s pink house, Beirut’s new attraction? We asked ourselves the question when a colleague of Lebanese origin told us about the crazy desire of one of her friends to go to the Achrafieh district to see her, during a recent trip to Lebanon. At the beginning of 2020, Japanese journalists stood in front to obtain an image of Carlos Ghosn after he fled Japan in a trunk. But today, “there are no curious people ahead,” respond our colleague and the editor of Escape Ghosn. Their presence intrigued Marwan Abdo-Hanna and prompted the publisher to contact the former boss of the Renault-Nissan alliance to make a comic book on his exfiltration. The project was successful: the graphic novel published Tuesday by Samir editions. It is through this means that 20 minutes was able to speak by video with Carlos Ghosn, “based on the principle that the questions must be on the comic strip and not on current affairs” was specified in advance.
Verbose, during the interview, the businessman describes in broad terms his daily life in Beirut. “I imagine he has more free time than four or five years ago,” slips Marwan Abdo-Hanna. Certainly, but when we hear Carlos Ghosn detail his activities, we wouldn’t want to manage his schedule. Next, make plans for the weekend 20 minutes seems absolutely simple.
Speaker via Zoom
The last page ofEscape Ghosn reveals he has “a growing winery,” has “invested in start-ups” and teaches at university. He confirms and specifies: “The university [maronite du Saint-Esprit de Kaslik, où il donne des cours] takes up my time, the different start-ups that I help and support take up my time, investments that I have made in the past and which have their own management ask me for advice. »
And then comes the big part. “I spend a lot of time on legal issues. There are complaints against me and I have filed complaints against Nissan and Renault. It will take several years. » And as Lebanon is in full economic stagnation, Carlos Ghosn and his wife, through an NGO, “dedicate a lot of time to secondary schools to prevent them from collapsing and young Lebanese finding themselves without any hope” .
His entrepreneurial expertise is also in demand. “I give a lot of conferences too,” announces the businessman. In countries without an extradition agreement with Japan. “It often happens over Zoom, I do them remotely,” replies the man who is claiming a billion dollars in damages from Nissan for defamation and construction of false evidence. Many people come to Lebanon and as part of their visit, they spend a day with me. I talk to them about management, crisis management, expansion strategy. They prefer to listen to a practitioner than an academician. »
“I don’t see a political future”
As for automobiles, the former CEO of Renault-Nissan shares his know-how. “My contribution is essentially around consultations with suppliers in the automotive industry, mainly those who are involved in innovations. For example, those who work on electric cars, their components, who work on batteries, autonomous cars, car connectivity, etc., they want to compare their opinion with that of a man of the industry which followed all these elements, launched them or accompanied them very closely. »
In his schedule, Carlos Ghosn reserves a few moments to meet politicians, particularly French ones. But there is no question of him becoming one. “I don’t see a political future, for a simple reason: it absolutely doesn’t tempt me,” he confides. The role they play, the way they play, the techniques and methods they adopt are very far from my conception of a contribution to society. I’m not criticizing it but it doesn’t appeal to me. On the other hand, if my experience can serve political leaders appointed by the Lebanese people to help them find good solutions for the country, I am ready to do so. »
“Escape Ghosn” by Michèle Standjofski and Mohamad Kraytem, published by Samir. 20 euros. Released October 17.