Is it possible that if he gets re-elected by parliament one more time, but he makes you the interim prime minister so that there can again be a free and fair election in December, would you accept that?
No, no, no. I am not looking at this for myself. I am looking at this for the empowerment of my people. And I am looking at this for saving my country from a militant takeover, (and) God forbid, disintegration. I think this is the worst crisis that we faced since 1971.
What we are looking for is a cooperation, once the uniform is off. The PPP cannot cooperate with a uniform presidency which blurs the distinction between civil and military rule. Because the PPP has been fighting every single military dictatorship that there has been in the country and we symboliSe the aspirations of the people for a democratic Pakistan.
The PPP is also looking for holding fair elections. We won't like a situation where the elections are manipulated. And then we are offered a handful of ministries in return for legitimising fraudulent elections.
So what would be necessary for you to consider the elections will be fair and free, what would be the conditions?
Very good question. The All Parties Conference (of Opposition parties) held in July earlier this year, which was called for by Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy, came up with the points that need to be implemented by the Election Commission of Pakistan for the holding of fair elections. And earlier, the very widely respected international group known as the NDI, National Democratic Institute, held a roundtable of all political parties in Pakistan and the roundtable also came up with proposals.
And we have handed these proposals over to Musharraf's side. And they have been promising us for some months that they will actually implement various proposals that have come during the time for fair elections. They keep reassuring us that the elections will be fair.
But unfortunately, except for transparent ballot boxes, none of those reforms have been implemented, which is really leading to some unease in PPP circles and indeed the Opposition circles that now the elections are round the corner, when is this all going to happen? When are these reforms going to be lifted? And then there is also the issue of balance between the presidency and the parliament.
I see little point in getting a parliament elected where the prime minister is thrown out two months later. We had this in the '90s when the presidential power to dismiss the parliament was used ruthlessly, not only against Mr Nawaz Sharif and myself twice, but even against Mr (Muhammad Khan) Junejo.
We feel that there is little point in taking our country backward to the instability of the 1990s. We have to move forward towards a better political system where we know what the role and responsibility of the parliament is and what the role and the responsibility of the president is.
Photograph: A Pakistani radical stands in front of the Lal Masjid during a clash with paramilitary troops in Islamabad. Pakistani security forces finally stormed and took control of the pro-Taliban mosque after a fierce battle that left more than 90 people dead. Photograph: Aamir Qureshi/AFP/Getty Images
Also see: Musharraf: The growing siege mentality
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