Caribbean News
TCI: Eco-Explorer Mario Rigby’s next adventure brings him home and thousands will be watching
#TurksandCaicos, April 3, 2021 – Let’s just say Turks and Caicos’ Mario Rigby loves a challenge; first he hiked nearly 7,500 miles across the continent of Africa, then he paddled the 220 miles of Lake Ontario in 20 days and now he is planning to return home in an adventure which will take him across at least eight islands in the TCI in under a week.
“I recognize myself as an eco-explorer, so that means I go around and explore places, I go on expeditions. Sometimes it’s scientifically backed, sometimes it’s just for adventure, sometimes it’s just to tell a story and I think that is the ultimate freedom I’ve allowed for myself…to become this person,” said Mario Rigby in a March 26 interview with Brenesha Cox on her Facebook Live show, Our Turks and Caicos.
A news report out of Canada, where Mario is both a resident and citizen, is exposing the latest physical exploit on the horizon for Rigby, who will kyak, run, hike, cycle and swim to cross the eight main islands in six short days.
“My life of adventure, it really stared in Turks and Caicos. I was one of those barefoot kids you would see on the side of the road,” said the now 35-years old who grew up in Providenciales, “we would go fishing, we would go and camp out in caves and we would do this long before we even knew what camping was. So a lot of my experiences came from just moving around in Turks and Caicos.”
Mario Rigby has become a celebrated explorer; features in magazines, numerous television and media interviews; endorsements and fans in the millions and staunch followers on Instagram are at 40k, Facebook with 24k and over 2k on his YouTube channel.
Mario told the publication, the mission will be grueling but it allows him a sentimental connection to his roots.
“I’m practicing for my upcoming expedition called, the Caicos Challenge, which is actually going to be one of the most grueling expeditions that I have ever done in my life,” informs Mario on his YouTube channel where he pauses from training at the ice-capped peaks of the Bruce peninsula in Canada to explain, “A large component of the expedition is endurance training so I have come here, to take long hikes, get my body in shape.”
This latest expedition of Rigby begins on April 30 and will actually have an interactive opportunity for those watching the his mission, live.
“There is also a community challenge aspect to the expedition, where people can actually join in real time. As an example, if I am doing a 30k run, then people from around the world can also do a 30k run and then those points can be matched on a leadership board on the Strava app.”
ABOUT Caicos Challenge:
The Caicos Challenge is a gruelling six day expedition that covers all eight of Turks & Caicos’ main islands. The entire challenge will be done solo by Mario using only human-powered propulsion which includes; swimming, biking, kayaking, diving, running and hiking. This will be an athletic feat that has never been recorded before making Mario the first to ever do so. As Mario traverses the Turks & Caicos he will showcase the beauty of the islands through his eyes. Besides capturing stunning beauty and taking up an incredible challenge such as this Mario will explore how sustainable development plays a major role throughout his region and what are some actions people can take locally.
This expedition will begin April 30th in Turks and Caicos Islands and will begin with the traverse of the Columbus Passage, a gruelling 40 km kayak across the open Atlantic Ocean.
By Deandrea Hamilton | Magnetic Media
October 14, 2025 – It’s being called political theatre — but for citizens, constitutional watchdogs, and democracy advocates across the Caribbean, it feels far more serious. Within a single week, two national parliaments — in Trinidad and Tobago and St. Kitts and Nevis — descended into turmoil as opposition members stormed out in protest, accusing their Speakers of bias, overreach, and abuse of parliamentary procedure.
For observers, the walkouts signal a deeper problem: erosion of trust in the very institutions meant to safeguard democracy. When Speakers are viewed as political enforcers instead of neutral referees, parliaments stop functioning as chambers of debate and start performing as stages for power and spectacle — with citizens left wondering who, if anyone, is still accountable.
October 6: St. Kitts Parliament Erupts
The first walkout erupted in Basseterre on October 6, 2025, when Dr. Timothy Harris, former Prime Minister and now Opposition Leader,
led his team out of the St. Kitts and Nevis National Assembly in a protest that stunned the chamber.
The flashpoint came as the Speaker moved to approve more than three years’ worth of unratified parliamentary minutes in one sitting — covering 27 meetings and three national budgets — without individual review or debate.
Dr. Harris called the move “a flagrant breach of the Constitution and parliamentary tradition,” warning that the practice undermines transparency and accountability. “No serious parliament can go years without approving a single set of minutes,” he said after exiting the chamber.
The Speaker defended the decision as administrative housekeeping, but critics were unconvinced, branding the move a “world record disgrace.” The opposition’s walkout triggered renewed calls for the Speaker’s resignation and sparked a wider public discussion about record-keeping, accountability, and respect for parliamentary norms in St. Kitts and Nevis.
October 10: Trinidad Opposition Follows Suit
Four days later, on October 10, 2025, the Opposition United National Congress (UNC) in Trinidad and Tobago staged its own walkout from the House of Representatives in Port of Spain.
The UNC accused the Speaker of partisan bias, claiming she had repeatedly blocked urgent questions, ignored points of order, and allowed government members to breach standing orders without consequence.
“The Speaker has failed in her duty to act impartially,” the Opposition declared in a statement. “Parliament is not the property of any political party or Presiding Officer.”
The dramatic exit was seen as a culmination of months of rising tension and frustration, with opposition MPs arguing that parliamentary rules were being selectively applied to silence dissenting voices.
Political analyst Dr. Marcia Ferdinand described the twin walkouts as “a warning sign that parliamentary democracy in the Caribbean is teetering on the edge of performative politics.”
“When chairs become political shields rather than constitutional referees,” she said, “democracy becomes theatre, not governance.”
A Pattern Emerging
While St. Kitts and Trinidad are very different political environments, both incidents point to the same regional fault line: the perception that Speakers — the guardians of parliamentary order — are no longer impartial.
In Westminster-style systems like those across the Caribbean, the Speaker’s authority depends not on power but on public confidence in fairness. Once that credibility erodes, parliamentary control collapses into confrontation.
Governance experts say the implications are serious: eroded trust between government and opposition, declining public confidence in state institutions, and growing voter cynicism that “rules” are flexible tools of political advantage.
Why It Matters
Parliamentary walkouts are not new in the Caribbean, but what makes these recent events different is their frequency and intensity — and
the regional echo they’ve created. Social media has amplified images of lawmakers storming out, with citizens from Barbados to Belize questioning whether the same erosion of decorum could be happening in their own legislatures.
Analysts warn that if this perception takes hold, it risks diminishing the moral authority of parliamentary democracy itself.
“Once opposition MPs believe the rules are rigged, and once citizens believe Parliament is just performance,” said one Caribbean governance researcher, “you’ve lost the most valuable currency in democracy — trust.”
Restoring Balance
Political reformers across the region are calling for tighter Standing Order enforcement, independent parliamentary service commissions, and training to strengthen Speaker neutrality. Civil society leaders say the public must also play its part by demanding transparency and refusing to normalize partisan manipulation of parliamentary procedure.
Whether these twin walkouts become catalysts for reform — or simply another episode of Caribbean political theatre — will depend on what happens next inside those chambers.
For now, democracy watchers agree on one thing: when opposition leaders feel the only way to be heard is to walk out, the entire democratic house — not just its Speaker — is in danger of collapse.
Angle by Deandrea Hamilton. Built with ChatGPT (AI). Magnetic Media — CAPTURING LIFE.
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