CALGARY — Who says Alberta’s election campaign isn’t a laughing matter?
Alberta’s Wildrose party took a step away from the serious and into the sublime with an April Fools day news release announcing plans to pursue a merger between Alberta and Saskatchewan to form a new province.
The new entity, to be called Saskberta, would also relocate Alberta and Saskatchewan’s capital cities to the border town of Lloydminster, which would be renamed Regimenton.
“Alberta and Saskatchewan share many common values and concerns,” said Wildrose leader Danielle Smith in the faux news release.
“I believe that merger represents an important step forward for both provinces.”
Smith wrote the merger presents a number of important economic benefits for Alberta, including access to a deep-water port to facilitate export of Alberta’s energy products, access to Canada’s largest oil can in Rocanville, Sask., and significantly expanded parking.
“Alberta and Saskatchewan are both blessed with abundant natural resources, which is clearly an area we can better pursue as a single province,” said Smith. “We also have a shared commitment to eliminate pirate activity on the North Saskatchewan River.”
Smith also promised to remedy the lack of NHL hockey in eastern Saskberta by securing a third NHL franchise which she suggested be named the “Saskberta Grain Elevators”.
Her chief rival in the campaign, Conservative Premier Alison Redford, gave the gag thumbs up saying she had totally forgotten what day it was.
“It’s so funny because I was so busy this week that usually with (daughter) Sarah I try to think of a really good April Fools joke and I woke up and I saw that and thought yeah it’s April Fools,” she chuckled.
“So we madly went around and put some saran wrap on the sugar bowl but that’s about the best I could do this morning.”