Regina – With rallies, protests and convoys popping up all over the oilpatch over the last month, it was inevitable some people would plan to protest Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s presence in Regina for a town hall on Thursday, Jan. 10. And that’s exactly what is happening.
By late Wednesday evening, Pipeline News was sent a route for a protest convoy in Regina. The convoy starts at Saskatchewan Polytechnic (formerly known as SIAST, and before that, the Plains Hospital). It then crosses Ring Road on Wascana Parkway, proceeding to the University of Regina campus. From there it loops around the university campus, turning right into the campus on University Drive South. It would then loop around the campus on University Drive back to Wascana Parkway, turning south there and looping around again. The convoy is expected to meet at 5:30 p.m. and get rolling by six. There’s no intention of blocking traffic, but the intention is to slow it.
“We want to be seen and heard at that time,” said Brenda Stettner, organizer. She lives Bethune, and she’s a piano teacher in Regina. She lived in Alberta for 20 years, so she’s tied closely with the oilpatch.
Asked for the why behind this protest, she said, “Basically under the UN sustainable development plan for 2030, out of that came the carbon tax, the open border policies, the no pipeline Bill c-69, the tanker ban off the west coast.
“It’s mostly the no pipelines, the no tankers ban, the re-education of the mainstream media, funded by the Trudeau government. It is this, determining the laws that Mr. Trudeau is dictating to Canada. We did not vote for these changes. It feels like we are being run by a dictatorship.
“The other thing we’re pissed off about is we’re funding our own demise, basically. We, the citizens of Canada were not consulted, nor was this agenda voted on. We were not consulted on the carbon tax. It’s part of the UN agenda, the Paris Accord.”
It is a Yellow Vest thing, she said. “It’s a personal thing. I have friends and family in the oil industry, and they’re hurting.”
She’s encouraging participants to bring their signs. “If they want to wear a vest, fine. If they don’t want wear a vest, fine. Show up and let our voices be heard.”
Jay Riedel, one of the organizers of the Estevan truck convoy protest on Dec. 22, is heading up to Regina to take part. He said, “Since word of the Trudeau town hall meeting, we needed to capitalize in being involved in a close proximity protest to show our discontent with the lack of support for our resources.”
