President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday urged the All Progressives Congress (APC) to settle its disputes or risk defeat in the 2023 general elections.

The President, who made the call in an interview on the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), insisted that the ruling party must resolve its disagreements before the national convention.

The party has tentatively fixed its national convention for February.

Buhari insisted that APC would not be a safe haven for corrupt politicians.

He also reiterated his desire to bequeath a secure and economically vibrant country to his successor next year.

The ruling has been rocked by several crises in the last two years.

One of the crises led to the sack of the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) led by Adams Oshiomhole, in 2020.

Several members of APC had also been demanding the dissolution of the party’s National Caretaker and Extra-Ordinary Committee headed by the Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala-Buni.

The President said: “My own position is simple. I think I succeeded in trying to get my position understood in the sense that I said we start from bottom upward, from the polling units to wards, to local government, to state, and then to Abuja. So it is the party because I am only concerned about my party. The party members in all constituencies will know that their convention is coming up and therefore when they come to Abuja, they are likely to act together.

There is no kingmaker from Abuja that will say take this or take that, no constituency is to be dictated to, all the constituencies are supposed to produce their leadership in our party, what other parties do is their own business.

“But we want to make sure that our party members understand that they are respected from polling units to wards,  to local government,  to state, and up to Abuja. So those who want to be elected at any level let them work for it, nobody is going to appoint anybody.

“We have a time frame for the national convention, we have to work because the four-year circle is constitutional. It cannot be interfered with by anybody. So if the party couldn’t agree, then the opposition can take over.

“What did the PDP do? They saw that they can’t come together but when ACN, ANPP, CPC, APGA came together before PDP realized it they were off, they are still off, so they can see it.”

“I have always said that joining the APC is no guarantee to  escape prosecution if you are corrupt.”