A veteran Liberal Party fundraiser and Loto Quebec executive denies he ever took a bribe from a well-known entrepreneur.
Pierre Bibeau was chief organizer of the party from 2001 to 2003. He returned to the fold at the behest of former premier Jean Charest, and testified Tuesday at the Charbonneau Commission.
The Liberal Party veteran worked as chief organizer of the party in 1978, under Claude Ryan.
Bibeau, who was married to former Liberal cabinet minister Line Beauchamp, has been named several times during the commission's hearings.
During his testimony, he played down his role in the party’s financing activities.
However, other witnesses before the commission have said he played an active role in party financing.
Bibeau denied allegations made by entrepreneur Lino Zambito, of Infrabec, who told the commission he had given a sum of $30,000 in cash to Bibeau at his office at Loto Quebec in exchange for fast-tracking a project.
Bibeau did acknowledge that the first thing he did after Zambito's testimony was close his bank accounts and safety deposit boxes, making it hard to find out if he ever received the $30,000 or if that money was ever in his account.
Justice France Charbonneau asked Bibeau why he closed the bank accounts and safety deposit boxes.
He said his actions show he wasn’t in a right state of mind.
“It wasn’t logical at all,” he said. Bibeau added that after Zambito’s testimony, he became depressed and suicidal.
Charbonneau later asked him what was the safety deposit boxes were for, to which Bibeau replied they were for keeping change.
The next witness Tuesday afternoon was Marc-Yvan Cote, a former health minister under Robert Bourassa's last government, and was quickly hired by the Roche engineering firm when he quit politics in 1995.
Cote testified Roche was after his contacts, not only admitting he maintained his contacts within the party after he joined Roche, but also appeared proud of it.
“I was able to get all the information I needed, because I built trust and respect within the party,” he said.
Cote made no apologies for his actions.
“I’m not here to play a hypocrite,” he said. “It’s not one individual or one company. It’s a societal problem, where people make donations and expect something in return.”
Cote’s testimony continues Wednesday.