The executives have recently become embroiled in for a bribery scandal at Alcatel during their tenures.

However, Quigley continued to affirm he treated relations with the company as a conflict of interest and stepped away from such negotiations.

"Neither Mr Beaufret nor myself took any part in the choice of Alcatel as a supplier of fixed lines," he told media at a press conference last week.

"We'd left the company but nevertheless there was a perception that because we had both been senior members of the company. I'm clearly involved in areas where I don't see any conflict of interest or any even perceived conflict of interest."