Last May, Bill and Melinda Gates announced they were getting a divorce but would work together for the benefit of the Gates Foundation. It is now known that there is a side plan if the former couple cannot get along with the organization while continuing to co-chair.
“We continue to share our faith in this mission and we will continue our work together at the foundation, but we have not managed to grow as a couple in the next phase of our lives. We ask for space and privacy for our family, ”Bill Gates tweeted on May 3 during the announcement.
The outlined deal gives Bill and Melinda two years to sort out their indifference and work together for the Foundation they formed in 2000. If the experience doesn’t go smoothly, Melinda Gates should step down and step down as co-chair.
According to the BBC, the agreement states that Melinda French Gates must receive “personal resources” from her ex-husband in order to be able to do charity work if she leaves the function. At the time of her divorce, Melinda was “deeply proud” of all the work the Foundation had managed to accomplish in 20 years.
“I deeply believe in the Fund’s mission and remain fully committed as a co-chair of its work,” Melinda said in a statement referring to the organization’s work in developing countries, namely in the area of health.
The fund’s executive director, Mark Suzman, admitted to AP that Plan B was implemented so that the couple could “be transparent about the agreement they entered into between themselves.” “This is part of a private agreement between them, as part of a broader understanding of divorce,” Suzman told AP.
“Both have assured me that their intentions and commitments include a long term tenure as co-chairs and trustees of the Foundation. And that’s exactly what we are planning, ”continued the executive director.
Mark Suzman added that if the agreement does not go as expected, the funds received by Melinda “will be completely separated from the donations to the Foundation, and this will not be reflected in any way.”
