Date: 21st August 2026

Kingston City Council will table two separate arbiter determinations at its ordinary meeting on Monday 24 August, both arising from misconduct complaints lodged by Cr Hadi Saab against fellow councillors.

Cr Caroline White will be suspended for two months, while Cr Jane Agirtan has been directed to apologise and undertake social media training.

Cr Jane Agirtan — IAP 2026-9

Arbiter Louise Hill found that Cr Agirtan breached clauses 2(1)(a) and 2(1)(b) of the Model Councillor Code of Conduct over a series of social media posts made on 10 January 2026, including a story titled “Let’s talk about men who creep” that named and included screenshots of members of the Saab family. Cr Agirtan had retracted the posts during mediation in March but did not apologise or acknowledge harm at that time.

The arbiter cleared Cr Agirtan of the more serious integrity-related clauses, 4(1)(a) and 4(1)(b), finding the conduct did not concern council business or mislead the public. Cr Agirtan’s submission that she has a neurodivergent communication style and a personal history of harassment was accepted as context but not found to excuse the conduct.

Cr Agirtan has been directed to deliver a verbal and written apology to Cr Saab at the meeting where the decision is tabled, publish a scripted acknowledgement on her Facebook, Instagram and the relevant community forum, and complete social media training within three months, with evidence of completion required within seven days of finishing it.

Cr Caroline White — IAP 2026-10

In a more extensive determination, Arbiter Dr Lily O’Neill considered eleven separate allegations against Cr White spanning January to March 2026, most relating to her public campaign against a $75,000 council grant to the Druze Community Charity of Victoria — an organisation in which Cr Saab held an office-bearer role, having declared a conflict of interest and stood aside from the original grant decision.

The arbiter dismissed the majority of the allegations, finding Cr White’s social media commentary, including posts critical of a state minister and the appointment of council monitors, fell within the code’s protection for “robust public debate”, where grounded in some evidence.

Two findings of misconduct were made, both under clause 2(1). The first concerned a draft Notice of Motion referring to “related payments made to Cr Saab” in connection with the Druze grant, which the arbiter found implied he had improperly benefited financially, without evidence, despite Cr White having been told beforehand by a council officer that the wording was defamatory. The second concerned a laughing-emoji reaction to a third-party Facebook comment suggesting council monitors “should concentrate on monitoring Hadi Saab”, which the arbiter found constituted an endorsement of an unsubstantiated claim.

Cr White has been suspended from the office of councillor for two calendar months, to commence the day after the 24 August meeting, and directed to complete social media training. The arbiter noted the severity of the sanction reflected Cr White’s continued use of the disputed wording after being warned it was objectionable, and that she had not apologised or attempted to remedy the implication.

The Herald Sun reported that the suspension has sparked an intention from Cr White to run for state Parliament in the seat of Clarinda, potentially as an independent. She is also said to be seeking legal advice about a potential appeal.