NSW ALP candidate Khal Asfour’s ‘secret directorship’ probed

Canterbury-Bankstown mayor Khal Asfour failed to disclose his directorship of a company as part of his council requirements, spark­ing a probe.

Canterbury-Bankstown mayor Khal Asfour. Picture: Tim Hunter

Canterbury-Bankstown mayor Khal Asfour failed to disclose his directorship of a company as part of his council requirements, spark­ing a probe by the NSW ­Office of Local Government.

Australian Securities & Investments Commission corporate records reveal Mr Asfour is the ­director and secretary of a company named Melbourne Grande, with the principal place of business linked to a Greenacre property understood to be his home ­address.

One of NSW Labor’s upper house candidates for an eight-year term at the upcoming March election, Mr Asfour did not include the company in his 2021-22 council pecuniary interest returns, either as a source of income or as an interest or position held in a company.

Mr Asfour and his wife, Sally, are the sole shareholders of Melbourne Grande.

In response to questions from The Australian, an OLG spokesman said: “Under the model code of conduct, councillors are required to disclose information about positions held in cor­porations and sources of income from trusts in their returns of interests.

“Any allegations that a councillor has failed to comply with disclosure obligations should be referred to the Office of Local Government for consideration.”

Following The Australian’s inquiries, it is understood the OLG expanded an existing investi­gation into Mr Asfour.

Neither Mr Asfour nor the council responded to requests for comment about Melbourne Grande.

In his 2021-22 council disclosures, Mr Asfour includes several other corporate interests, including an unnamed position at EAL Consulting, his directorships of his self-managed super fund, S&K Asfour, and council insurer Statecover Mutual.

Mr Asfour could also be in breach of the OLG’s model code of conduct in relation to a ­donation made to his campaign by his sister, Gizele Asfour, who is employed at a real estate agency engaged by the council.

According to the NSW OLG’s code of conduct, councillors who knowingly received a benefit from a reportable political donation may give rise to a non-pecuniary interest, and “must declare a … conflict of interest in the matter, disclose the nature of the interest and the conflict of ­interest”.

Canterbury-Bankstown Council and LJ Hooker Bankstown have been in a commercial relationship since 2018, with the council’s financial statements revealing payments to the agency totalling $35,000 for property management services over the four years, including $12,000 in the last financial year.

Mr Asfour’s sister Gizele is employed as a licensed real estate agent at LJ Hooker Bankstown.

NSW Electoral Commission disclosure records reveal she donated $5000 to her brother’s campaign on December 21, 17 days after the completion of last year’s pandemic-delayed local government elections.

The council declined multiple offers to provide details about how LJ Hooker was first engaged by the council, and whether the process was open to tender and had been advertised publicly.

Mr Asfour said the accusations had “no factual foundation”, labelling them “erroneous and a blatant distortion of the facts”, and asserted he had adhered to the council’s code of conduct “at all times”.

Neither Ms Asfour nor her employer, LJ Hooker Bankstown director Sam Nader, responded to requests for comment.