Moncef Slaoui, a former GlaxoSmithKline executive, speaks with President Donald J. Trump at a vaccine development event at the Rose Garden in the White House on Friday, May 15, 2020 in Washington, DC.
Jabin Botsford | The Washington Post | Getty Images
Moncef Slaoui, who led the development of Covid vaccination under the Trump administration, said on Wednesday that he “deeply regretted” a woman whose claim of sexual harassment led to his ousting as chairman of a company earlier today. is backed by the pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline.
Slaoui also said he is taking leave of absence from positions with other health companies and a venture capital firm to focus on his family, to whom he also apologized.
Slaoui, who worked at GSK for 30 years, was chief scientist for Operation Warp Speed, the US government’s project to develop vaccines to combat the coronavirus pandemic.
On Wednesday, GSK said the board of directors fired the 61-year-old as chairman of Galvani Bioelectronics over “substantiated” allegations that he sexually harassed and had inappropriate behavior towards a female employee at GSK several years ago. GSK is the majority shareholder of Galvani.
The woman made the allegations in a letter sent to GSK in February. A law firm hired by the pharmaceutical company, Morgan, Lewis & Bokius, continues to investigate her allegations.
“It is with great regret that I acknowledge today’s statement from GlaxoSmithKline plc regarding my termination as Chairman of the Board of Galvani,” Slaoui said in a statement late Wednesday.
“I have the utmost respect for my colleagues and I feel terrible that my actions have put a former colleague in an uncomfortable situation. .
“I also want to apologize to my wife and family for the pain this is causing,” Slaoui said.
“I will work hard to redeem myself with all those who have affected this situation,” he said.
Slaoiui is married to Kristen Slaoui, who was previously a vice president and head of business development at GSK.
GSK has made a damning statement about Slaoui by announcing his resignation from Galvani.
“Dr. Slaoui’s behavior is completely unacceptable,” wrote GSK, stripping Slaoui’s name from its vaccine research center in Rockville, Maryland.
The company also said that Slaoui’s actions “represent an abuse of its leadership, violate company policy and violate the strong values that define GSK’s culture.”
“The company expects everyone at GSK to act in accordance with its values, especially its leaders where standards are the highest.”
GSK CEO Emma Walmsley said in a separate letter to employees that she was “shocked and angry about all this, but I am determined”.
“I want to be clear that sexual harassment is strictly prohibited and will not be tolerated,” Walmsley wrote.
“Protecting the woman who came forward and her privacy has been a critical priority during this time. This will continue,” Walmsley wrote. ‘I respect and admire her courage and strength. I’ve spent many nights in her shoes lately. Above all, this simply should not have happened. ‘
Galvani is a medical research company focused on the development of bioelectronic drugs for the treatment of chronic diseases. It was formed through a collaboration between GSK and Verily Life Sciences, formerly known as Google Life Sciences. Verily is a subsidiary of Google parent company Alphabet.
Slaoui joined Centessa Pharmaceuticals last month as Chief Scientific Officer and advisor.
Centessa was founded by the venture capital company Medicxi. Slaoui has been a partner in Medicxi since 2017.
Slaoui is also chairman of the board of vaccine company Vaxcyte.
A GSK spokeswoman, when asked if the company would share details of its investigation into Slaoui with other firms he is affiliated with, said, “We are not sharing anything other than what we have said publicly at this point.”