COMMENT | Decades from now, when people read about Ismail Sabri Yaakob’s biography, they would think that his premiership was scripted. His political career was orderly, progressing smoothly almost without a blip, as though his ascendency was predestined and calculated.

At 25, Ismail Sabri did what any ambitious young man would do. He began his career as a lawyer (as did all prime ministers of his time) while getting involved in the Umno Temerloh division.

He served as the information chief, then youth chief, deputy chief and eventually the Umno Bera chief in an expected 15 years.

Before running as an MP, he took the expected political route, by working as a political secretary to a minister, and serving agencies like Pahang Tenggara Board, Malaysian Tourism Promotion Board and the National Sports Complex to get his administrative training like most Umno leaders.

A term after he was elected MP, Ismail Sabri started serving junior portfolios in government like the youth and sports minister and the domestic trade and consumer affairs minister, before ascending to portfolios that could consolidate Umno’s stranglehold by becoming the agriculture and food industries minister and subsequently rural and regional development minister.

These two ministerships were regarded as particularly important to Umno because...