Mayor Gibson in office at the Paynesville City Hall
Cyvette M. Gibson is the tenth Mayor of Paynesville, Liberia. She was appointed as acting Mayor on November 14, 2012; the youngest mayor in the country. Her administration faced an Ebola epidemic, persistent waste management issues, and human rights concerns.
Early life and education
C. Cyvette M. Gibson was born in Dakar, Senegal on December 2, 1974. She is the first daughter of Liberian natives Yvette Chesson-Wureh and Chauncy M. Gibson. Her grandfather was Attorney General Joseph J.F. Chesson, who was executed by firing squad during the 1980 Liberian coup d'état.[1]
Political career
Cyvette Gibson served as chief of office at the Monrovia City Corporation under the administration of then Mayor Mary Broh. During this time, it was reported that Gibson insulted journalists reporting on claims of human rights abuses by the mayor.[2]
Gibson was appointed as acting Mayor of the city of Paynesville, Liberia on November 14, 2012. She was the youngest mayor in the country when appointed by President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf to the position.[3]
Waste issues have dominated much of her tenure as Mayor of the city. While she has pushed many different trash initiatives, some of these have been criticized by citizen groups for not addressing the problem.[4] Much of the focus has been on the commercial center of the Monrovia region, known as Red Light Market.[5] In April 2014, she called for greater attention to waste issues from the Liberia Marketing Association.[6]
With limited funding, she was able to enlist the support of many residents of the city (including drug addicts and the homeless) to clean up Red Light.[4] While she focused significant attention on health during the West African Ebola virus epidemic, she turned again to waste issues afterward with a significant grant from the World Bank.[7]
Gibson organized efforts throughout the city to deal with the Ebola outbreak in the country. She used community leaders throughout the city to educate and identify potential Ebola victims.[4] These efforts were assisted by UNICEF. At the height of the outbreak, she was one of seven officials who were excluded from a blanket dismissal of officials by President Johnson-Sirleaf.[8]
Since the outbreak, she has continued the focus on waste, sanitation, and education in the city. In addition, major efforts have been undertaken on development of the Dupont Road area of the city. A 2016 editorial in FrontPage Africa singled her efforts out as "transforming a once failed city."[9]
Paynesville's partnerships
A well being opened by Mayor Gibson in Paynesville
The City of Paynesville in its efforts towards a clean and developed city,[10] has joined the 100 Resilient Cities network.[11]
Mayor Gibson reads to students at the T-Five Academy Junior & Senior High School
Operation Stop Ebola was a community base awareness campaign in collaboration with UNICEF to fight the deadly Ebola Virus Disease (EVD). The campaign utilized over four hundred (400) community leaders to collect EVD data, promote sensitization awareness about the EVD and how to stop it. The campaigns also provided hygiene materials and implemented permanent hand-washing stations in communities.[12][13][14][15][16]
The PCC held its first annual Science Fair November 24, 2016, challenging students to expand their interest in innovative discoveries in the sciences.[17]
Awards
Mayor Gibson received 2014 Awards from the Paynesville Youth for Education and Development for Financial and Moral support given to the Young people of Paynesville.Mayor Gibson receives Mayor of the year Award.
She became the President of the Association of Mayors and Local Government Authorities of Liberia in 2017.[18]
