Guelph MPP and Ontario Minister of Education Liz Sandals is not part of the 140-character social media universe. She does not have a Twitter account, does not tweet, does not respond to tweets, does not retweet tweets.
Sandals’ office confirmed Tuesday that a Twitter account under the name “Liz Sandals MPP” does not belong to the actual MPP. In an email, Jenny Waterston, executive assistant and office manager for Sandals said it appears the account is a joke.
“No, Minister Sandals does not have a Twitter account,” Waterston wrote. “The account that you have referenced was noticed this morning and reported through Twitter. Apparently the description of the account states it is a joke.”
The account describes itself as one that is “following the circus around Guelph MPP Liz Sandals and her Ontario Liberal Government,” and offers “fun quotes and pictures.”
Waterston said that requesting a removal of the site does not appear to be an option because it was registered as a joke.
“Liz’s Queen’s Park staff is looking into any options that can be pursued to set the record straight,” she wrote.
One innocuous tweet from the account on Tuesday asked people on Twitter where their favourite place to eat in Guelph was. Another featured a link to Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne’s tweet about investing in schools in Hamilton.
The account had 425 people following it and 16 followers as of mid-afternoon Tuesday.