Musharraf is dictator!.. Musharraf is trying to prolong his rule! … Musharraf is American agent! … blah blah blah … 
If Musharrf was a dictator then we would not have even heard of Lal building fiasco. He would have ordered the air force to bomb them into non-existence and would have forced the media to report what he wanted. This is what dictators do and have done ever since the word dictator came to existence.
Dictator = One that dictates. One that do not dictates cannot be a dictator.
Dictator does not mean one that listens, negotiates, allow anyone in the country (where his power exists) to say anything against him (person as well as his rule) and live another day, allow descent against him, comes amongst people to justify any of his actions … etc … etc.
So, President Musharraf that has allowed people talking anything against him on media and media courageous enough to broadcast or publish all sort of things against him, cannot be a dictator.
As for agenda to prolong his rule: for that he President only needs to woo no one other than his own constituency; that is military forces. As it is they on whose strength he came to power.
Nevertheless, if there was any truth in such allegations (and Musharraf really needed that), it seems that President Musharraf does not know how to prolong his stay. For that, he could have used his army power and at the same time woo all past corrupt politicians too. He should have known how much some Pakistanis, mostly rich and vocals, love corruption and nepotism, and the biggest corrupt becomes their biggest hero. He should have known that to become the best CJ in the eyes of Pakistanis, CJ should be involved in corruption and nepotism and would like to do that with freedom and immunity.
Musharraf should have also started corruption and nepotism in big way, making BB, Zardari and Nawaz his tutor, and Mullah fazlu his disguise, and would have done all this trying to show the nation, innocence of Qazi. He would have stolen any dollars Pakistan gets and would have transferred it to accounts in foreign lands, and would have done all to increase corruption in Pakistan (Filled his own pockets and let others have their pocket filled). He would have done tango with all political parties in Pakistan and would have squashed all cases on BB, AAZ, NS and all corrupts, and would have made BaiNazeer prime minister, as well as letting her do all sort of corruption she like. He could even have tried to accommodate NS, his brother SS, and peoples like Bugti (he just needed to throw some bones to them and that was all they needed).
He should have accommodated all Mullahs and send them every sort of Halwas and Hoorayains whenever they wanted. He would have given Mullahs plenty of plots so that they did not needed to become Pakistan biggest organized land grabbers, and would have accepted all sort of their demands regarding laws, where those laws should only be applicable on those whom Mullahs want, while exempting blue-eyed Mullahs from punishment of such laws, as Zia used to do. He should have given Lal Building land grabbers and criminals anything they wanted including land and building they occupied illegally, legalizing that and further should have given them children library as well as right to occupy any plots or building they liked in Islamabad.
He would not have bothered about press freedom but would have made undeclared policy that anyone that writes against him would disappear. He would have also bribed journalist with briefcases of notes and plots so that they only write good about him and make him zille-illahi, khadem-ul Kashmir-o- Kashmore (as Saudi government does).
And there are many things mostly that he could have done to prolong his rule … I don’t know, seems I am living with my eyes close, please … I like to get educated and would like to know (with logical arguments, not blind statements) what he is doing to prolong his government in Pakistan … Does anyone saw President doing anything of above to prolong his rule?
As for dealings with USA, a government could do either to earn dollars from USA for themselves or for the country. None in the past have done to get dollars from USA for the country and most did to get dollars for themselves. USA cannot prolong anyone rule in Pakistan. If that would have been the case, NS would have been ruling in Pakistan forever. USA was threatening Pakistan forces and started that threatening statements after Kargil war (especially after Nawaz sent Shahbaaz to USA to get American support against possible army coup in Pakistan), that not to take any unconstitutional step to throw Nawaz, as USA would not tolerate that. Even after the coup, USA was putting lot of Pressure and was using his lap-dog Saudia to pressurize Pakistan using their economical links (Saudia was giving $500 million worth of oil to Pakistan on differed payment, threat to stop that pushed Government to release NS from prison, as at that time with bankrupt economy, Pakistan could not have afforded that).
If Mush wanted than there would not have been around 16 billion dollars reserve in Pakistan and plenty of scopes left to borrow more (as all these dollars past politicians use to rob). If he wanted dollars for the country from USA (that Pakistan needed during earlier years) than also with such huge reserves and strong economy that Pakistan now have, Pakistan does not need that any more (and in reality, USA during Musharraf rule did not even gave (be that in loan or grant), a fourth of what Pakistan have in reserve). So it makes no sense. The only sense that one can make is that Musharraf is doing what he is doing in Pakistan is for safety and security of PAKISTAN, and most Pakistanis believes that too that all what he is doing was needed since a long time (if there are some opposition to that and some do not like that, than it is understandable, as nothing happens (especially policy change in such big scale) that all would like, however good that maybe for the country).
