Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk will not be joining Twitter's board of directors as previously expected.
In a statement posted to Twitter late Sunday night, the platform's chief executive Parag Agrawal announced that Musk decided not to join the board of directors on the same day he was to assume the position, CBN News reports.
"Elon's appointment to the board was to become officially effective on 4/9, but Elon shared that same morning that he would not be joining the board," Agrawal said in a statement initially sent to Tesla employees. "I believe this is for the best."
"We have and will always value input from our shareholders whether they are on our Board or not," he added. "Elon is our biggest shareholder, and we will remain open to his input."
Agrawal did not say why Musk decided not to join the board at the last minute, but he did explain that having Musk "as a fiduciary of the company where he, like all board members, has to act in the best interests of the company and all our shareholders was the best path forward."
Elon has decided not to join our board. I sent a brief note to the company, sharing with you all here. pic.twitter.com/lfrXACavvk
— Parag Agrawal (@paraga) April 11, 2022
According to Victor Morton and Ryan Lovelace of the Washington Times, Agrawal's reference to "fiduciary duty" and "his noting that board members must act in the company's best interests would have at least the potential to require Mr. Musk to muzzle his public criticism of the company. In addition, board membership can rein in a person's ability to purchase shares because he would have access to inside information about the company," the men wrote.
While Musk has yet to issue a public statement concerning his withdrawal, he did post comments, including one where he posted a face emoji with its hand over its mouth and another one suggesting that Twitter's headquarters in San Francisco be turned into a homeless shelter. The comments, however, were later deleted, as reported by The Wall Street Journal.
As Christian Headlines previously reported, Musk became Twitter's largest shareholder last week after the billionaire entrepreneur purchased 73.5 million shares of the social media giant, giving him a 9.2 percent stake in Twitter Inc.
Prior to the purchase, Musk had asked his followers whether he should launch a new social media platform that would safeguard free speech amid Twitter's tendency to censor certain voices.
Related:
Elon Musk Purchases Stock in Twitter, Becomes Largest Share Holder
Photo courtesy: ©Getty Images/Loren Elliott/Stringer
Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.
