Buffalo Party pushing for referendum, Saskatchewan independence

The Buffalo Party is hoping to have a big impact on the provincial election and the future of Canada.

It’s the first time the party has run. Its members describe themselves as a western independence party. It was formerly known as Wexit Saskatchewan.

Wade Sira is the Buffalo Party’s leader. While there has been much talk of western separation since the 2019 federal election, Sira makes a distinction between separation and independence.

“We want independence, whether it’s within Canada or out of Canada. We want to be in control of our destiny in Saskatchewan. We shouldn’t have to be waiting on permission from Ottawa on whether we should be allowed to do things or not,” he said.

As such, his party would push for a referendum on separating from the rest of Canada.

“This is a democracy. The people have the right to have that choice. If they decide to stay in Canada, then the job of the government is to do what’s best for Saskatchewan in this country. If the people want to leave, then the job of the government is to do the best for this province as an independent, sovereign state,” he said.

His party’s platform includes issues like pushing for the construction of pipelines, removing the carbon tax and scrapping national equalization payments.

There are currently 13 candidates running under the Buffalo Party banner. While that isn’t enough to form government, Sira said it is important to be careful when choosing people to represent the party brand.

“We want to make sure that we have vettable people. We don’t want to just throw anybody into a seat. We want to make sure that they’re relatable and that they don’t have any iffy past. Sometimes, when you just want to fill a seat, just to have someone in that position, you end up just grabbing anybody off the street. You tend to run into problems like that, so we don’t want to do that,” he explained.

Even if it is impossible for the Buffalo Party to form government in this election, he still believes it is possible to have an impact if it manages to gain seats in the Legislative Assembly.

“We need to hold the Sask. Party accountable. Scott Moe himself has said the NDP are ineffective opposition. We are that opposition that will hold them to an accountability that nobody else has so far,” Sira said.

Sira is running in the Martensville-Warman riding.