By KEVA LIGHTBOURNE, Guardian Senior Reporter, kdl@nasguard.com

A top official at the Broadcasting Corporation of the Bahamas gave evidence in the Election Court yesterday, as Marco City MP Zhivargo Laing continues to defend his win at the May 2, 2007 polls.

BCB General Manager Anthony Foster was called to the witness stand by Fred Smith, lead attorney for Laing, and was questioned regarding former ZNS employee Dianna Wilson-Swann.

Swann's vote is being challenged by Laing, who is also the State Minister for Finance.

Smith was trying to find out where Swann was living during the six-month period leading up to the general elections.

Foster told the court that Swann was appointed to the position of Senior Deputy General Manager with responsibility for Sales and Marketing on November 1st, 2006.

The witness said she performed her duties regarding that position at ZNS headquarters, Third Terrace Centerville and Rusty Bethel Drive. Foster said her normal hours of work would have been between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m.

Under cross-examination by attorney Philip Davis, lead counsel for Pleasant Bridgewater, the witness testified that prior to Swann taking up that position, she held the post of Deputy General Manager of the Northern Service. Her duties regarding that position, he said, were performed in Freeport.

However, he said shortly after her new appointment she came to Nassau and stayed at a place in Prospect Ridge, an appointment that was found by the Broadcasting Corporation.

Attorney Davis suggested, however, that the transaction for that appointment was not settled until late December 2006. He further suggested that between the time of her appointment, November 1st, 2006 and January 2007, she continued to commute between Nassau and Freeport because she did not have a place in the capital. But, Foster insisted that from her appointment she was permanent at Prospect Ridge.

In fact, the witness said on one occasion, he collected her from her Prospect Ridge apartment to attend the Cancer Ball, but he could not remember the exact date of the event.

"To the best of my knowledge, she was residing in Nassau because Monday through Friday she was in Nassau," Foster maintained.

Questioned as to whether he would have seen her after she got off from work, the witness said he saw her some evenings and saw her some weekends.

Prior to Swann relocating to Nassau, she was residing at a home owned by ZNS at #7 Beginning Drive, South Bahamia. At that time, Swann also owned her own home at 141 Gooseberry Drive.

Foster told the court that when Swann was appointed to the position in Nassau, she was given a specific time to vacate the home in Freeport.

"Was she happy about her appointment?" asked Davis. Foster said she did not say anything to him about being unhappy.

Also giving evidence yesterday was Anasis Austin, an equipment operator at the Grand Bahama Power Company.

He is also a resident of 118 Kitchner Avenue. Austin was called to the witness stand to give evidence regarding his sister Kim Connolly. Her vote is being challenged by Bridgewater.

Austin told the court that Connolly was living at 118 Kitchner Avenue, from a period after Christmas 2006 to at least two to three weeks after the election.

He said Connolly moved the family homestead after moving out from her matrimonial home in Bahamia.

Bridgewater lost the Marco City seat by 47 votes. She is asking the court to declare that she and not Laing is the duly elected MP for the constituency.

Bridgewater is challenging the votes of 80 people, while Laing is challenging 23.