ISMAIL Sabri Yaacob, who will be sworn in tomorrow, is the first prime minister born after Malaysia achieved independence in 1957.

He was born on January 18, 1960 in Temerloh, Pahang and will be sworn in tomorrow as the country’s 9th prime minister following the resignation of Muhyiddin Yassin and the collapse of the Perikatan Nasional government.

The Bera lawmaker, who has been in politics for more than 20 years, was thrust into the limelight amid the Covid-19 pandemic as he assumed the role of senior minister in charge of defence, often appearing on television to update the nation on the progress of the government’s fight against Covid-19.

He was subsequently made deputy prime minister. His promotion, however, did not last as the Perikatan Nasional administration collapsed soon after due to a loss of majority support.

The Malaysian Insight takes a closer look at Ismail Sabri’s political career that paved the way to his meteoric rise as the new prime minister.

Early days

In the course of completing his secondary school education, Ismail Sabri moved to three different schools.

He started his secondary education in Sekolah Kebangsaan Bangau, Pahang in 1967 before moving to Sekolah Menengah Air Putih, Kuantan, Pahang in 1973 and finally completing his Form Five education in Sekolah Menengah Teknik Kuantan, Pahang in 1976.

He then went on to pursue his Form Six education in Jaya Akademik before going on to study law for his bachelor’s degree in University Malaya in 1980.

A trained lawyer, he started his career in the legal profession in 1985 but soon found himself a lot more active in his party Umno.

Before stepping into politics, he held the director’s position in the Southeast Pahang Development Authority, the Tourism Promotion Board of Malaysia and the Bukit Jalil National Sports Complex.

Career in Umno

Ismail Sabri was appointed a committee member for the Umno Temerloh division in 1987. In 1988, he became the division’s information chief before becoming the Umno youth chief for Temerloh in 1993.

He was then elected deputy division chief of Umno Temerloh in 2001. In 2004, he was elected division chief and also became the MP for Bera.

In 2018, he was elected Umno vice-president, a role he still holds.

Political career

While he was actively participating in Umno, from 1995 to 1999, he was the political secretary to Sabbaruddin Chik, the former minister of culture, arts and tourism.

His first stint as a minister and cabinet member came in 2008. Under the Abdullah Badawi government, Ismail Sabri assumed the portfolio of the minister of youth and sports from 2008 to 2009.

He had since headed several portfolios including minister of domestic trade and consumer affairs (2009 – 2013), minister of agriculture and agro-based industry (2013 – 2015), and minister of rural and regional development (2015 – 2018).

In March 2020, following the collapse of the Pakatan Harapan government, he was made  senior minister in Muhyiddin’s cabinet.

In July, he was promoted to deputy prime minister, but it proved to be short-lived. Forty days into the job, on August 16, the entire Muhyiddin cabinet resigned.

Following several days of uncertainty, the Yang di-Pertuan Agong announced today that Ismail Sabri will be sworn in as the ninth prime minister on August 21.

Controversies

Though Ismail Sabri has not been implicated in any corruption charges like his compatriots, he is not without controversy, in particular his race-related comments.

In 2015, he encouraged Malay consumers to boycott Chinese-owned businesses, claiming that they own 90% of Malaysia’s economy.

The same year, he proposed the setting up of Low Yat 2, officially known as Mara Digital Mall, a digital gadget mall catering only to Malay traders.

That, however, did not take off with many vendors who started up stores in the mall closed  down after several months.

Also in 2015, Ismail Sabri was caught eating turtle eggs at a seafood restaurant in Sandakan, Sabah. He claimed ignorance, saying he was not aware of the law that prohibits the possession and consumption of turtle eggs in the state.

Ismail Sabri also endorsed the vaping industry in 2015 as it was a business dominated by the Malays. He was criticised by health experts who chided him for promoting the industry.

In the run-up to the 2018 general election, in an election rally, he told voters that every vote for the DAP is akin to giving power to Pakatan Harapan to eliminate the Malays’ “special rights” and the “uniqueness of Islam”.

A good selection but… 

Former prime minister Dr Mahathir Mohamad told The Malaysian Insight that the choice of Ismail Sabri as the prime minister is a good one provided that he does not follow in the footsteps of Muhyiddin and Najib Razak.

“Ismail’s selection is good, but those who are backing him do not have a good track record. His support comes from the court cluster.

“For now, he is not involved in any corrupt activities, as far as we know. (But) if he surrounds himself with people the likes of Najib, he will learn the wrong things.

“If he too starts to practise ‘cash is king’, it will be a repeat of Najib and Muhyiddin’s legacy,” he said.

Though the Langkawi lawmaker did not have a close working relationship with Ismail Sabri, he believes the latter has potential.

“He came after I resigned but I believe among the young, there are those who are talented… but we don’t know what they are capable of as yet.

“Their experience is less compared to those who have been leaders for long. However, among leaders from the older generation, there are those who are good and bad too.” – August 20, 2021.