Toronto Mayor Rob Ford stayed mostly on the sidelines during his first committee meeting since returning to the city after a two-month stint in rehab.
Ford -- who was undergoing substance abuse treatment at GreeneStone facility in Bala, Ont. -- kept mostly to himself during Wednesday's meeting, speaking only to some of his allies on council.
The meeting was run by Deputy Mayor Norm Kelly. The Ward 40 councillor -- who is still the defacto mayor after council voted last fall to strip Ford of most of his mayoral duties -- said he has not yet spoken to Ford. He said he also did not watch Ford's post-rehab speech that he gave on Monday.
"I didn't see it, sorry," he told reporters. "I had a really busy couple of days with my family."
On Monday, fresh out of rehab, Ford gave a nearly 20-minute long statement, during which he publicly apologized to the citizens of Toronto for his past behaviour. He also said he had embraced "clean living" and was on the road to recovery.
Ford did not take any questions from reporters that day. He also remained mum on Tuesday, telling reporters that it was Canada Day and not a day for questions.
The embattled mayor, however, was not able to stay out of the headlines. He was met with boos and heckles from critics on Tuesday, including a shirtless jogger, who has since become an online sensation. The man, who has been identified as high-school teacher Joe Killoran, blasted the mayor for avoiding questions from reporters and not being truthful.
Ford was also criticized by his rivals, including mayoral hopeful John Tory.
"A part of doing this job is answering questions of the public, of the media, of the average citizens," Tory told reporters. "If you can't answer questions and you won't answer questions, then you can't govern."
On Wednesday, however, Ford broke his silence -- but only to two hand-picked media outlets. In the one-on-one interviews, Ford talked about his addiction and why he decided to seek treatment.
With a report from CTV Toronto's Natalie Johnson
