Former editor-at-large of the Canberra Times Jack Waterford told a committee into the creation of an anti-corruption watchdog the Australian Federal Police must come under its watch as the AFP's "long processes of delay" meant they could avoid accountability.

"A lot of people wonder why are we still prosecuting David Eastman for example? Well one reason why is that as long as some legal process is taking place against him, 28 years after the murder, the DPP [Director of Public Prosecutions] and the Australian Police Force can say the matter is sub judice, it's premature to have an inquiry into the conduct and the judgement of anyone who's involved with it," Mr Waterford said.

"If there's a violent death in the ACT, perhaps in a prison or in a street outside, the police force can stall answering questions for two years, saying it's all sub judice pending a coronial inquest.

"Now we have very poor inquest and coronial legislation in any event and we have a judiciary that seeks to limit rather than expand it but I'll leave that out, what I want is a culture inside the police force that is response to public opinion and believes and accepts it is accountable to it and that's what we don't have."

Mr Eastman, 71, will be re-tried next year for the shooting death of former Canberra police chief Colin Winchester in the driveway of his south Canberra home in 1989. After being sentenced to life imprisonment in 1995, his conviction was quashed in 2014 after a court found he did not get a fair trial.

But a spokeswoman for ACT Policing said they did not "hide from public scrutiny or use its processes to do so."

"ACT Policing's fundamental policies when providing information publicly are to ensure the rights of the victims and the alleged offenders are protected, to ensure the judicial process is not compromised and to ensure the integrity of the investigation is preserved," she said.

"We maintain a principle of separation of powers between the enforcement and judicial arms of government. As such, it is not appropriate for ACT Policing to comment on matters that are progressing before a court. "

Mr Waterford told the committee he wanted to see an integrity commission with a "very broad remit" cover maladministration as well as corruption.

He said while the ACT didn't have an especially corrupt administration, with the same proportion of people who could succumb to corruption as any other jurisdiction, the ACT provided more "temptations".

"A part of this comes from the fact that private industry in this town is particularly focused in a few areas which depend particularly on concessions, licensing and grants from government," Mr Waterford said.

"There's so many parts of industry in Canberra … that turn on dealings with government .That's why in this town ... we have such a heavy lobbying industry and why information is such an important currency.

"In that sort of environment I think it's particularly important we have very strong and powerful [commission]."

Another witness, Marea Fatseas, highlighted the unease felt in the community over lingering questions about land deals and said an ACT integrity commission could dispel that.

Ms Fatseas, who was an independent candidate at last year's ACT election, pointed to the deconcessionalisation of the lease of the Brumbies' Griffith headquarters, the lease variation charge waiver and the subsequent sale as an issue which a commission could retroactively explore to restore public confidence in government.

"It leaves people in the community wondering who benefited and how come we still don't have any answers," Ms Fatseas said.

Deputy chair of the Inner South Community Council John Elquist said questions around where the money went, the suppression of an auditors report and the sacking of the club's chief executive further compounded public misgivings.

"All the rest of us can say is 'gosh, that's so very strange'," Mr Elquist said.

The committee hearings will resume in September.