Albertans stage more pro-pipeline rallies, vow to drive Ottawa
Posted December 30, 2018 7:56 am.
Last Updated December 30, 2018 8:02 am.
This article is more than 5 years old.
ROCKY MOUNTAIN HOUSE, Alta. – Speakers at another pro-pipeline rally in Alberta continued their attacks on Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Saturday, saying they plan to bring their message to Ottawa in 2019.
Chad Miller with the group Oilfield Dads told hundreds gathered in Rocky Mountain House that Alberta is suffering its “worst recession turned depression” in a generation due to weakened oil prices exacerbated by a lack of pipeline capacity. Miller says government regulations are suffocating the oil and gas sector.
“We are shouting and banging at the doors. We want to go to work, we don’t want to sit idle any more. We want pipelines to be built now. We don’t want to be sitting around having bailouts, we don’t want any loans.”
He says even those who put away for rainy days have had to use their savings to weather what he calls the “never-ending hard times.”
Numerous rallies and truck convoys have been held across Alberta and Saskatchewan in recent weeks to protest against federal actions that critics say will make building pipelines more difficult.
A convoy in Medicine Hat last weekend attracted 650 vehicles, according to police, and groups are planning one in February that will travel from Western Canada to Ottawa.
The groups Rally 4 Resources and Canada Action say in a Facebook event post that the convoy to Ottawa is intended to end February 20th on Parliament Hill.
