Initial comments on the $68.9 billion budget presented to the National Assembly on Friday by Finance Minister Saisnarine Kowlessar were hard to come by from leading interest groups in the society. And the comments of those persons to whom Stabroek News spoke were very guarded.

This newspaper was unable to reach Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) President, Patrick Yarde. However, GPSU General Secretary, Randolph Kirton, said that he was unable to comment, as he had not had an opportunity to reach the document.

Public Sector Commission (PSC) chairman, Brian James was out of town as was the Tourism and Hospitality Association of Guyana chairman, Gerry Gouveia, and so too was PSC vice chairman, Dr Peter DeGroot.

Both Trades Union Congress President Carvil Duncan and its secretary, Lincoln Lewis were out of the country and Andrew Garnett said that he had not been able to study the document as yet.

ROAR's leader, Ravi Devi, who returned to the country yesterday and had yet to uplift his copy of the budget, said that he was not in a position to make a detailed comment. However, he told Stabroek News that what jumps out was the failure to raise the income tax ceiling in the little bit he had seen and heard of it.

Jerome Khan, businessman and PNC/R spokesman on foreign trade called the budget pure fiction out of the now no more Soviet Union that did not reflect the economic, political or social reality of Guyana.

He said that his initial reaction was disappointment that the budget had been reduced to "a cut and paste" strategy, with the emphasis on making things sound good rather than elaborating a cohesive plan to kick start the country's economic development.

Khan said that the budget like that of last year was not developed with clearly defined objectives and failed to effectively articulate and signal government's policies and intentions.

Holbert Knights, Bartica Chamber of Commerce chairman, said that his organisation expected a more significant relief package than that which had been announced. However, he

pointed to a few bright spots such as the five year Basic Education Access and Management Systems (BEAMS) estimated to cost $7.5 billion.

Knights welcomed the investment in human resources, which he described as an excellent choice. However, he said that there should be a proper evaluation of the Secondary Schools Reform Project (SSRP) to determine its impact and to identify the mistakes that had been made so that they could be avoided in the implementation of the present project.

He welcomed too the $103 million allocation for creating new jobs but wondered about no mention of any policy or programme that would ensure the sustainability of the projects to be implemented.

Knights said that this concern arose in the light of the slow implementation of the President's Youth Choice Initiative, explaining that some of the projects that had been started had stalled and others identified were yet to commence.

He also referred to the reduction of the entertainment tax paid by cinemas but observed that it was disappointing that it was not accompanied by any commitment to enact and enforce copyright and piracy legislation. Without these he said, the cinema owners would still find it difficult to attract increased attendance.

The Bartica businessman also welcomed the recognition of the role that the private sector could play in the growth and development of the country and commitment to provide technical assistance as well.

He said however that he would like to see assistance provided in the field of marketing and production including management techniques.

He said that assistance should be provide to help businessmen better predict and adapt to market changes as well as changes in the economy so as to ensure the sustainability of their enterprises.

Knights among other unmet expectations of the budget noted the absence of any specific programme of continued assistance for the rice industry. He said that he hoped that somewhere in the programmes for agriculture there was some measure that would help in improving farming practices that would result in higher yields.

Unmet too were his expectations of a greater level of incentives particularly for the productive sector, explaining that it was the current wisdom that tax breaks were used to stimulate the economy which could result in a reduction in the price for imported raw materials that would spur a reduction in prices.

A spokesman for the Cinema Owners' Association, which had campaigned for a temporary abolition of the entertainment tax and duty free concessions for the importation of equipment, said that the association was not unhappy with the reduction but would issue a more detailed statement later in the week.