Look at this from the point of view of the Russians, the...

Look at this from the point of view of the Russians, the Chinese, Cameco, Rio Tinto, BHP etc.

65% of the shares are in the hands of three parties, KAH, RIO and Polo. 87% are in the hands of the top 20, over 90% in the hands of the top 50.

There is no way in without paying a fair price. They will have tried negotiating, they will have tried cajoling, they will have tried demanding and none of this will have worked to bring the price down.

They can't take control on-market, they can't take control off-market, what is left?

Feeding the media with dark suggestions in a pitiful attempt to undermine major shareholders' confidence is pretty much a last ditch effort to lower the price.

I am sure they will have tried to buy influential government individuals but without enough people on-board that will not have got far. Unless you paid off everyone, there is always the thorny issue of international standing which the others will be cognizant of.

A country in its early stages of development must attract foreign investment. Sure, you could be beholden to one group but far better to attract investment from a number of sources from around the world. Not only do you keep your independence but you also make your assets worth more in a competitive environment.

Anything can happen but going down the path some here have darkly suggested would set Namibia back 20 years in terms of international trust. How freely would foreign investment flow to a country where there is no rule of law? Where contracts are worthless?

The Namibian government has thus far shown themselves to be responsible world citizens and have been rated many years in a row as one of the lowest sovereing risk nations in the world. You don't develop that level of trust if you have a history of lies and deception.

Would enough ministers suddenly conspire with each other for short term personal gain at the cost of destroying collective credibility for decades to come? Anything is possible but how likely is it?

My own opinion is that we are seeing signs of capitulation, it won't be long before there is acceptance that this strategic and historical resource will simply have to be paid for at a price acceptable to the major shareholders.