Former city of Montreal public works projects director Robert Marcil, still on the stand at the Charbonneau Commission, says the hundreds of cell phone calls between himself and certain construction entrepreneurs were all perfectly innocent, and had nothing to do with collusion.

He was shown a series of cell phone registries that showed he took calls from and made calls to colluding construction entrepreneurs about 20 times a month while he was public works director, but he insists he never gave the entrepreneurs inside information on public contracts.

Commission lawyer Denis Gallant has earlier noted that Marcil had visited one city contractor in Laval, on the very day he sent a memo to city workers under his responsibility, advising them of a new city code of conduct.

He says he probably didn't serve as such a good example to his employees, admitting he lacked 'vigilance' and was 'negligent' when it came to respecting the code.

Photo: La Presse