Nassif denies corruption claims in heated ICAC testimony from Lebanon

Jean Nassif, calling in from his bedroom in Beirut, spent Tuesday wrapping up his testimony before New South Wales's Independent Commission Against Corruption, and he did not go quietly. The property developer, who has been the subject of a sprawling inquiry into alleged corrupt dealings between major donors and Liberal Party figures, arrived at the hearing with a simple message: he is not corrupt.

Nassif acknowledged that he had paid lobbyists Jeremy Greenwood and Christian Ellis one million dollars to help accelerate his development approvals. But when counsel assisting Peggy Dwyer SC presented text messages between Greenwood and Ellis discussing how Charles Perrottet was not prioritizing Nassif's projects, the developer pushed back hard. He said the conversation between the two lobbyists was their problem, not his. He had hired consultants to solve his problems and unblock obstacles, he explained. Whatever those consultants may have done—if they did anything corrupt at all—he was not aware of it and bore no responsibility for it. "I am not involved with paying politicians to get my projects approved," he said.

The ICAC investigation centers on a more serious allegation: that senior figures in the NSW Liberal Party anticipated receiving two million dollars in prohibited donations from Nassif in exchange for specific political outcomes. Those outcomes allegedly included damaging the career of NSW Liberal minister David Elliott and removing David Chandler, the building commissioner. The commission is examining whether donations were promised or made, and if so, what was expected in return.

Nassif's testimony grew heated as the hearing progressed. When Dwyer attempted to interrupt what she saw as a digression, Nassif threatened to withdraw entirely. "I want to prove my point. If you don't want me to prove myself I'll withdraw from all this nonsense," he said, holding up handwritten notes to the camera. He accused the commission of trying to make him look corrupt while ignoring what he characterized as genuinely corrupt officials in government. "You guys are not attacking the corrupt officials in the government," he said. "You want the country to be ruled by crooks."

Assistant commissioner Fabian Gleeson SC intervened, telling Nassif to take a breath and reminding him that the inquiry's purpose was to establish facts about specific allegations, not to serve as a platform for attacking other people. Gleeson acknowledged that Nassif could be passionate, but said the hearing was not the forum for those complaints.

The tension reflected the stakes of the inquiry. Nassif has been a significant figure in Sydney's property development world, and his willingness to testify—even from abroad, even under duress—has provided the commission with direct testimony about how money and influence may have flowed between developers and politicians. His denials are now part of the record, set against documentary evidence that investigators will need to evaluate. The commission continues to examine whether the alleged donations were actually made, who knew about them, and what political figures may have understood they were receiving in return.