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By Elvis Onuigbo | February 19, 2026 Central Bank  Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso warns that the rapid growth of stablecoin transactions  now approaching $22 billion annually in Nigeria  risks undermining monetary sovereignty and destabilising the naira. In the most forceful public statement yet from Nigeria's monetary authority on the subject of digital assets, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Olayemi Cardoso has issued a sweeping warning that the explosive growth of stablecoins and private digital payment platforms poses a direct threat to the country's foreign exchange stability, monetary sovereignty, and its ability to transmit monetary policy. Speaking at the G-24 Technical Group Meetings in Abuja on Wednesday, February 19, 2026, Cardoso placed Nigeria's stablecoin challenge in a broader global context, arguing that without coordinated international frameworks, emerging market economies like Nigeria stand to lose the most — watching their curr...

Tax Reform in Nigeria | February 19, 2026 REFORM AND REVENUE DRIVE: Is Nigeria Expanding Its Tax Net? An In-Depth Policy Analysis | Nigeria Tax Act, 2025/2026 Introduction: The Tax Problem Nigeria Has Always Had There is a question that has haunted Nigeria's fiscal planners for decades, and it goes something like this: how do you run a country of over 220 million people on the back of one commodity? Oil built Nigeria's modern state, but it also made the country dangerously lazy about building a robust, diversified revenue system. When oil prices fell — and they always eventually fell — the cracks showed immediately. Salaries went unpaid. Infrastructure stalled. Social services frayed. The same crisis, different year. For a long time, the answer from successive governments was to borrow. Nigeria's debt profile swelled. But borrowing has a ceiling, and debt servicing eventually crowds out every other line in the budget. The logical conclusion — the one that kept get...

Do Women Really Talk More Than Men? A Comprehensive Examination of Gender, Communication, and the Science Behind the Myth Few claims about gender differences are as widely repeated as the idea that women talk significantly more than men. Popular versions of this myth place women's daily word count at anywhere from 20,000 to 250,000 words, compared to a much lower figure attributed to men. These numbers have appeared in bestselling books, motivational speeches, television programs, and casual conversation across the globe. But what does the science actually say? Are women truly more talkative than men by nature, and if so, why? This article takes a thorough look at the research, the history of the myth, the biology and psychology of communication, and what genuinely drives differences in how humans talk. The Origin of the Myth The claim that women speak far more words per day than men was dramatically popularized by psychiatrist Louann Brizendine in her 2006 book The Female Brain. S...

Ötzi the Iceman: 5,300-Year-Old Murder Mystery Discovered in the Alps On September 19, 1991, a German couple, Erika Simon and Helmut Simon, were hiking in the Ötztal Valley in the Austrian Alps when they discovered what they believed was the body of a recently deceased mountain climber. But the body was far older than they imagined. It had been preserved in ice for more than 5,300 years. The man became known as Ötzi the Iceman, named after the valley where he was found. Around his body, researchers discovered remarkably well-preserved belongings: a bow and arrows, a copper axe, a flint knife in a woven sheath, two wooden containers holding maple leaves, parts of a backpack, a leather pouch with small tools, fur and leather clothing, sturdy shoes, and other small objects. These items provided rare insight into Copper Age life in Europe. Further examination revealed that Ötzi had an arrowhead lodged in his left shoulder, along with other injuries. Based on this evidence, researchers beli...

Are African Leaders Becoming Casualties of U.S. Power Politics? Written by: Elvis Onuigbo   TRUMP, AFRICA, AND THE POLITICS OF POWER When Donald Trump returned to the White House with his unmistakable “ America First ” rhetoric, the global order began to shift again.  Africa, as always, watched closely.  But this time, the stakes feel different.  Is Trump simply pursuing American interests like every U.S. president, or is Africa being treated as a bargaining chip in a larger geopolitical game?  More importantly, are African leaders unwittingly adopting a kind of politics that could weaken their own democracies?  A Transactional Approach to Africa Trump’s political philosophy has always focused on transactions. Alliances are measured by value. Partnerships are judged by returns. Aid is considered in light of benefits.  For Africa, this led to a more calculated relationship:    Aid discussions linked to U.S. interests   Increased scr...