RTÉ Board Chair Siún Ní Raghallaigh asked former director general Dee Forbes to resign on Friday 16 June.
This was after a Grant Thornton Review was provided to the Audit and Risk Committee of the RTÉ Board. The committee then recommended that the Board seek the resignation of Ms Forbes.
At the Oireachtas Media Committee, Fine Gael TD Brendan Griffin said that the resignation should not have been accepted on 26 June, when it eventually came, as it prevented the committee for calling on Ms Forbes to appear to appear before it.
Ms Ní Raghallaigh said that Ms Forbes still has the option of appearing before the committee.
Ms Ní Raghallaigh is one of three members of the RTÉ Board, who are in turn among seven representatives from the organisation attending the Oireachtas committee today.
In addition to Ms Ní Raghallaigh, RTÉ Board members Anne O'Leary and Robert Shortt are attending the meeting.
Interim Deputy Director General Adrian Lynch, Director of Strategy Rory Coveney, Director of Commercial Geraldine O'Leary, and Chief Financial Officer Richard Collins, who are all on the RTÉ Executive Board, are also attending.
Earlier, Ms Ní Raghallaigh told the committee that the organisation's "bond of trust with the public is tarnished".
In her opening statement, she reiterated her "profound regret" in relation to the controversy around payments made to presenter Ryan Tubridy, which arose last week.
She told members of the committee that the RTÉ Board also wanted to know why Mr Tubridy's earnings were understated to the public and the Oireachtas.
"That is the question we as a Board are also very anxious to know the answer to", she said.
Ex-Chair of the RTÉ Board Moya Doherty has confirmed she will attend tomorrow's meeting of the Public Accounts Committee, while former RTÉ Group Commercial Director Willie O'Reilly has offered to video call in remotely as he is abroad.
RTÉ's Director of Content Jim Jennings will not be attending either committee meeting. An RTÉ spokesperson said that Mr Jennings is currently in hospital after a medical procedure yesterday.
The RTÉ Board is a body made up of 12 people that makes policy for the broadcaster, while the Executive Board is a committee composed of senior management responsible for its day-to-day running.
The Executive Board reports to the RTÉ Board through the Director General.
"Step by step we will work to rebuild that trust"
In her statement, Ms Ní Raghallaigh told the committee that RTÉ "fell far short of the standards expected" of it as an organisation.
"I apologise for this egregious breach of trust with the public. I am also mindful that this Committee, and others, were in the past presented with information that was simply untrue.
"That was a breach of trust with you, the elected members of the Oireachtas, for which we sincerely apologise," she added.
Ms Ní Raghallaigh said that the organisation's bond of trust with the public was "tarnished", adding that "trust is precious, and once lost, trust is difficult to regain".
"Step by step we will work to rebuild that trust. We will not flinch in this regard," she adds.
Ms Ní Raghallaigh said RTÉ would work closely with "all aspects" of the Government-appointed independent, external review process when it commences.
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She also acknowledged the stress caused to the independent production sector as a result of the situation, and apologsed for the distress caused to RTÉ staff.
"I want to assure this Committee and the public that the Board is committed to ensuring that we get full clarity on this, that there is accountability for it, and that it never happens again."
Ahead of the address, Committee Chair Niamh Smyth of Fianna Fáil said that the committee supports the staff of RTÉ, adding that the committee remains open to hearing from Dee Forbes and Jim Jennings when they are able to do so.
Sinn Féin's Imelda Munster said it was "clear" that the issue "goes way beyond Dee Forbes", adding that the public would not swallow the claim that Ms Forbes was the only one who knew what was going on.
She said that Commercial Director Geraldine O'Leary organised the payments through the barter account, and asked "Why?".
Ms O'Leary said that "she was not involved in the construction of the deal."
"I was not in the room," she said, and that it was the first time anything like that "had come to me".
Ms Munster asked if Mr O'Leary chose to list the payments as consultancy fees. "That is a question that I cannot answer because I cannot remember the precise detail," Ms O'Leary said.
"What I remember most of all in early 2022 is the urgency to raise these invoices," she added.
To put those payments under consultancy fees is possibly "fraudulent", Ms Munster said, asking "how could you not remember something like that?"
Ms O'Leary then said she could not recall the wording of the invoices.
Fianna Fáil Senator Shane Cassells asked the Deputy Director General Adrian Lynch how the executive allowed "one man and his agent to become bigger than RTÉ".
Mr Lynch apologised on behalf of the Executive for a "breach of corporate governance".
He told members that on 7 May 2020, a guarantee was verbally given that RTÉ would guarantee a commercial deal involving Mr Tubridy.
Mr Lynch said that, in his view, this was a crucial part of the controversy, adding that when RTÉ gave that commitment it should have been reflected in the published salary of Mr Tubridy.
He told the committee that while he was aware of a commercial deal, he was not aware that RTÉ guaranteed the deal.
He explained that to his mind the deal involved three events, subject to finding a commercial sponsor, but if that did not occur Ryan Tubridy would not be paid.
Mr Cassells expressed concern over the influence of agents in RTÉ. Asked if there was evidence that some other media outlets were willing to pay Mr Tubridy more than €500,000, Mr Lynch reiterated that he was not involved in negotiations.
During the committee hearing, Sinn Féin Senator Fintan Warfield asked if it was appropriate for one RTÉ broadcaster, represented by a talent agent, to interview another client of that same agent.
Mr Lynch said that this should be clearly stated if it were to happen.
Meanwhile, RTÉ has said that negotiations on Mr Tubridy's radio contract have paused, as all new on-air presenter contracts are currently paused.
In a statement, it said the presenter stood down from the Late Late Show in May and that it had written to his agent to say that his contract had come to an end.
Negotiations had commenced regarding his radio responsibilities.
However, all new on-air presenter contracts are now on pause until a number of internal processes take place relating to the ongoing payments issue.
RTÉ has said that Mr Tubridy is not broadcasting on Radio One this week for editorial reasons and that it has no further comment to make.
The Government is continuing to finalise the terms of reference for a review into governance and culture at RTÉ.
It is expected to announce details of this by the end of the week.
The RTÉ Board has disclosed that the second Grant Thornton report - dealing with the period 2017 to 2020 - is "expected to be finished in the next four weeks".
Additional reporting Paul Cunningham
