All Malaysians would support the government's RM110-billion Eighth Malaysia Plan (8MP) presented today in Parliament if they were not incited by the opposition to reject it, said Prime Minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad today.

"The 8MP is for the good of all but certain quarters will slander and prevent us from doing what is good for the people, and this will in turn make the people go against us," he told reporters in a press conference outside the Parliament lobby.

Mahathir said a lot of time was spent by government leaders to explain issues to the people around the country.

"We have to fight something that we needn't have to if not for the incitement of some parties," he lamented.

Asked if there was a rift between him and Finance Minister Daim Zainuddin, Mahathir said, "You can ask him. He was around to hear my voice just now."

Daim was present during Mahathir's 90-minute presentation of the five-year 8MP. When the finance minister walked into the House, members of parliament were seen thumping tables in support.

Last week, Mahathir announced that Daim was on a two-month leave, sparking speculation that the finance minister would soon tender his resignation.

Strong foundations

Meanwhile, Mahathir also said that the economy would be better next year as many measures have been taken to improve it.

In his 21-page presentation this morning, Mahathir said the strong foundations of the macro-economy and finance sector would continue to provide the basis for national economic growth under 8MP.

"Our economic strength has been tested time and again by internal and external factors, the latest challenge being the speculation of our currency and stock market. But we managed to recover and continue to develop," he said.

He added that the main focus for the next five years is to turn Malaysia into an international information and communication technology (ICT) hub, adding that more ICT infrastructures would be constructed in suburban areas to narrow its digital divide with urban areas.

He refuted claims by certain quarters including the opposition that the statistics on the country's economy were 'falsified' and 'inauthentic', adding that those people were not able to distinguish between good and bad because of their own political interests.

In his comments on the achievements of the Seventh Malaysia Plan, Mahathir also defended the government's decision to impose capital control measures and not to take an International Monetary Fund (IMF) loan since the economic crisis.

"The assault on the 'tigers' of East Asia caused economic turmoil in this region. We created our own solutions to the problems and we did not owe IMF a large sum of money like our neighbouring countries.