GEORGETOWN, Guyana, CMC – Opposition politicians Tuesday described as “unrealistic” the GUY$142.8 billion dollar (US$702.7 million) tax-free budget presented to Parliament on Monday by Finance Minister Dr. Ashi Singh.

Shadow Finance Minister and member of the main opposition People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR), Winston Murray, said Singh’s presentation was “long on words and short on substance”.

He said that the estimates fail to outline how the administration plans to “lift Guyanese out of poverty and improve their general lives”.

Leader of the minority opposition Alliance For Change (AFC) Raphael Trotman said the finance minister himself did not seem too enthused about his budget as he was “uncharacteristically dull”.

“We didn’t see the usual flair that characterises Dr Singh,” he said, while noting that the budget contained no new measures for spurring the economy.

Trotman said he was particularly concerned about the lack of opportunities for the youth and the working people of Guyana.

The Guyana Action Party (GAP)/Rise Organise and Rebuild (ROAR) legislator, Everall Franklin, described Singh’s presentation as “uninspiring”, adding that the budget was very vague and had very “little in it” for the workers.

He said the budget did not take into effect the country’s inflation rate, and agreed with the other opposition politicians that failure to adjust the income tax threshold was disappointing.

Franklin said that the government did not indicate how it intends to implement the Low Carbon Development Strategy (LCDS) that has been identified as the pillar of the country’s development.

Singh told Parliament that the budget would allow the Bharrat Jagdeo administration to build on the socio-economic progress of the past few years.

The budget, the largest in the country’s history, was presented under the theme “Consolidate, Transform, Sustain” and Singh predicted a 4.4 per cent economic growth. Last year, the economy grew by 2.3 percent.