Gilles Duceppe sat down with Radio-Canada's Anne-Marie Dussault for his first televised interview since the Bloc was reduced to four seats on May 2. Radio-Canada

In his first televised interview since the collapse of the Bloc Québécois, Gilles Duceppe said he's still digesting how his party lost most of its seats to the NDP in the last general election, and warned that could lead to Quebecers being assimilated in Canada.

Duceppe, who lost his own riding of Laurier-Sainte Marie on May 2, sat down for an exclusive interview with Radio-Canada's Anne-Marie Dussault Wednesday.

He admitted that it was a huge defeat, and, despite looking more at ease than the day he last spoke publicly, the former Bloc leader showed some bitterness towards the NDP.

"We didn't show pride when we elected people who don't speak French to represent Quebec," Duceppe said, adding that somebody who doesn't speak German would not be elected to the Bundestag, nor would a non-English speaker be sent to Washington.

"But here, we elected a woman in Berthier-Maskinongé who says when people speak too quickly [in French], 'my brain doesn't follow,'" Duceppe continued, referring to NDP MP Ruth Ellen Brosseau.

Duceppe warned Quebecers that they will be assimilated if a change is not made.

"We'll be on the same slippery slope as French-Canadians and Acadians," he said.

Duceppe calls for PQ unity

Duceppe also weighed in on the crisis gripping the Parti Québécois, where five MNAs have quit in recent weeks over disagreements with the way the party is heading. Some of those five directly criticized the leadership of Pauline Marois.

"We're in a period of insecurity ... but we have to be responsible," he said. "When the election comes, we cannot have sovereigntists spread out into five or six different parties or we will ensure defeat."

Duceppe told Radio-Canada that he is enjoying his time off, and he said that there are other things in life than politics.

He did not, however, rule out returning to public life at a later date.

Dussault's full interview with Duceppe will air on 24 heures en 60 minutes on RDI Wednesday at 7 p.m. EST.