Today I submitted a request to the name of Lutsk city mayor Anton Kryvytskyi regarding the termination of my powers as a member of the city council's executive committee. I want to share the motives for this decision and action with the public, because I am convinced that its reasons are not personal but social in nature. After the 2002 parliamentary elections, the high voting results in the Lutsk electoral district for the "Our Ukraine" Bloc and its nominee Volodymyr Bondar, I was approved as a member of the executive committee of the Lutsk city council together with another representative of "Our Ukraine," regional council deputy Volodymyr Karpuk. For three years we participated in the work of the executive committee, trying to contribute our share of ideas, proposals, and partly critical assessments regarding the decisions under discussion. One of the key aspects of working in the executive committee was interaction with the "Our Ukraine" faction in the city council. Together with the deputy members of the faction, we discussed draft documents and developed our own initiatives. Such synchronized activity at different levels of local governance made it possible to introduce at least minor corrections to decisions supported by the pro-government majority. At present, the situation has changed dramatically. The political ideas that just half a year ago were a mark of opposition, of struggle against the regime, a cause for oppression and persecution by the authorities – today have suddenly become generally accepted, relevant, and even fashionable. The "Our Ukraine" faction has also changed its format; part of its members formed a new faction "Lutsk European," while the other part works in the renewed and expanded composition of "Our Ukraine." Deputies have now joined the faction thanks to whom very often decisions proposed by "Our Ukraine" were not adopted, deputies who disdainfully avoided "Our Ukraine members" so that, God forbid, the city mayor or someone else from the executive committee's leadership would not see them next to the oppositionists. Today these people are in the front ranks of the "orange" – some for opportunistic reasons, some on the persistent "advice" of leading representatives of the new government – today they are "Our Ukraine members." Recently information appeared that representatives of the renewed faction are initiating my recall from the executive committee because I, you see, am not "orange" enough and will not properly represent their interests in the executive committee. All right, friends, I want to simplify your task. I am leaving on my own. Apparently it was not enough from the first days of the formation of the "Our Ukraine" Bloc to work for its victory in the region, to head the district headquarters of "Our Ukraine" in the parliamentary elections, the Lutsk city election headquarters of candidate Yushchenko, to be the author of hundreds of technological ideas, an organizer of actions, a speechwriter, a sociologist, an analyst, and a PR manager all in one person. It's just that my scarf turned out to be not orange enough, and at the time of distributing the "trophies" of victory I was not persistent enough in begging for statuses and positions. I am deeply convinced that time will put everything and everyone in their places. The wise Lutsk community will soon elect its new representatives to the city council, and the composition of the executive committee will change. I have no doubt that I will still have the opportunity to work for the people of Lutsk and our glorious city, as will my colleagues who do not change their views depending on the political weather, because the main thing is not what flag you hold or what color your socks are. The soul and conscience cannot be repainted.

Sincerely, Oleksandr Martyniuk