WINNIPEG - Winnipeg Mayor Sam Katz says he’d be happy to tell Rob Ford all about Winnipeg’s location and attractions, after Toronto’s mayor mixed up the city with one in his own province.
“I’ve never had the opportunity to actually meet Mayor Ford but I can assure you next time I will, I will be very definitive in telling him where Winnipeg is and what a great city Winnipeg is,” said Katz.
Mayor Rob Ford was quoted as mistakenly referring to Winnipeg as being roughly 1,800 km east of its actual location during a discussion with a Chicago resident on Tuesday. It all began when Ford asked a girl where in Canada she had visited.
“The part where you go past Detroit and the river,” she said.
Ford answered: “Oh, Manitoba. Oh, you were in Manitoba and Winnipeg?”
The Toronto mayor was then corrected with the fact Windsor, Ont., is actually the Canadian city located next to Detroit.
Katz cautioned against assuming a lack of knowledge of the prairie city amongst all Toronto residents, simply because the city’s mayor made one error.
“As far as geography, I think they do a very good job of teaching that in school,” said Katz. “It’s one of the first things you learn.”
Winnipeg’s mayor made light of the guffaw, quipping, “He mixed us up with Windsor ... Starts with a W.”
Katz also noted geographic errors are not all that rare in politics.
“He’s not the first politician to do that,” Katz said.
