The post-defeat statements of a number of Abim (Malaysian Muslim Youth Movement) and ex-Abim leaders continue to amuse me.

We saw Mohd Anuar Tahir claming irregularities in Keadilan's party election. He specifically claimed that there were some doubts about certain delegates. But as Abdul Rahman Yusof rightly pointed out, the office responsible for preparing the list of delegates is the secretary-general's which, before the party election, was held by Anuar Tahir. If anybody is to be blamed for the alleged irregularities it is Anuar Tahir himself.

Yesterday malaysiakini reported Abim's president, Ahmad Azam, stating that Abim members are thinking of leaving the party. Yet, in his earlier statements he had indicated that the involvement of these Abim figures in Keadilan was in their personal capacity.

But Ahmad's statement, "They (the Abim members) have informed me of their intention to quit the party but I told them to stay put until we decide on the next course of action," shows that Abim is actually pulling the strings in a less than subtle and indirect manner.

There's also Ruslan Kassim's statement that he never was an Abim leader. Yet his decision, along with a number of Abim figures, not to accept the appointment offered by president Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail, seems to be too much to be taken as a coincidence.

Earlier Ahmad had stated Abim's desire to clean up its image which he claimed was tarnished during the party election. For a start it'll be good if he examine Abim's own conduct before, during and after the party election. It is Abim and its leaders and ex-leaders who are coming up with contradictory statements. It was Abim supporters who were caught red-handed (they were photographed in action) distributing poison-pen letters during the party convention. And it is Abim leaders who are behaving like sour grapes. It is difficult to imagine how Abim is going to repair its image if its leaders continue to whinge.

Perhaps Abim needs to realise that the rivalry during the last party election was not between Abim and JIM (Jamaah Islah Malaysia) or Abim and 'ex-Umno' members as some Abim figures would like to claim. It was between Abim and 'the rest of the world'.

This happened not because others were ganging up against Abim but because Abim leaders had proven to be incompetent in discharging the responsibilities given to them and had behaved in an insecure manner when less-than-flattering feedback was given to them.

Instead of figuring out how to improve their performance they chose to circle the wagon and behaved as though everybody who differed with them were marauding Red Indians. In the end, Abim's fate during the party election turned out to be like Custer's last stand.