ISMAIL Sabri Yaakob may have been labelled by many as a weak leader with limited support from his own party but he had successfully outmanoeuvred everyone, said the prime minister’s brother Kamarazaman Yaakob.

The flamboyant ex-student leader said his 62-year-old younger brother had passed two early tests by bringing down the country’s political temperature as well as effectively quelling internal struggle in Umno – at least temporarily.

Speaking to The Malaysian Insight, Kamarazaman, a staunch socialist and now leader of the Parti Kuasa Rakyat, said Ismail has done a good job in securing his position as the PM even with the limited support among Umno’s Supreme Council members.

“He is not just seen as a weak leader but also as a poor prime minister. In Umno, he is the vice-president and it is the first time in Umno’s history that a vice-president is the PM.

“Within the supreme council, the president has the majority of support. At least 10 MPs are behind Ahmad Zahid Hamidi while Ismail has three with him. 

“He could have gone hard against the so called ‘court cluster’ in Umno but surely his position will be shaky,” said the 73-year-old.

Kamarazaman said Ismail’s critics must also be honest on his achievements as the nation’s leader.

“He has never failed in handling any ministerial portfolio since he was elected as a minister for the first time in 2008. His track record is there.

“Secondly, when he became the opposition leader after the 2018 general election, he managed to become a functioning opposition leader. No one in Umno has claimed Ismail failed in his role in his 22 months as the opposition chief.

“Then he became the prime minister, he convinced the opposition to back him as PM and got them to sign an MOU which kept the country’s political heat under control,” said Kamarazaman.

Ismail was sworn in as Malaysia’s ninth prime minister following Muhyiddin Yassin’s resignation from the post after losing the support from the majority of parliamentarians.

His name was presented to the Yang di-Pertuan Agong as Umno’s PM candidate due to Zahid’s ongoing court cases.

Prior to his becoming the PM, Ismail was one of Muhyiddin’s senior ministers under the  Perikatan Nasional government.

Ismail’s next challenge

Kamarazaman said if Ismail is chosen to be the prime minister again – should BN win the general election, he should act in a more courageous manner.

“His next challenge if he becomes PM again is to command his cabinet members. Can he show his ideas? What is in his mind? He has to be brave in making decisions.

“I think if he can do these, he can become a successful PM. Then the public can judge if he is a weak or strong leader,” he added.

Ismail was previously seen as being pressured by Zahid to dissolve the Dewan Rakyat immediately.

Zahid had made numerous calls for parliament to be dissolved but Ismail was adamant not to follow the Bagan Datuk incumbent’s demand.

However, days after his government had presented the budget for 2023, Ismail announced the dissolution of parliament to pave the way for snap polls to be held.

The Election Commission has set November 19 for polling with nominations to take place on November 5. – October 22, 2022.