Five things to know to start your Monday

Trump will add a 25% tariff on aluminium and steel imports

U.S. President Donald Trump says he will add new 25% taxes (tariffs) on all steel and aluminium brought into America, on top of existing charges. This marks another big change in his trade policies.

Trump shared this news with reporters while flying to New Orleans for the NFL Super Bowl on Air Force One. He said he’ll officially announce these new metal tariffs on Monday.

Also, he plans to announce matching tariffs on Tuesday or Wednesday that will start almost straight away. These tariffs will apply to all countries and will match whatever tax rates other countries charge America.

“And very simply, it’s, if they charge us, we charge them,” Trump explained about the matching tariff plan.

According to government and steel industry figures, most of America’s steel comes from Canada, Brazil, and Mexico, followed by South Korea and Vietnam.

Canada, which has plenty of hydroelectric power, is by far the biggest supplier of raw aluminium to America, providing 79% of what the U.S. bought from other countries in the first 11 months of 2024.

Trump said the US might lose patience with the ceasefire deal

President Trump said on Sunday he’s growing impatient with the Israel-Hamas hostage exchange deal after seeing footage of recently freed Israeli hostages, who he said looked like people who had survived the Holocaust.

The three hostages released on Saturday appeared very thin and unwell. Trump’s comments have raised new questions about whether the deal will continue until all 76 remaining hostages are freed. This comes just days after the president suggested removing Palestinians from Gaza and putting it under U.S. control.

“They look like Holocaust survivors, They were in horrible condition. They were emaciated,” Trump said while travelling to New Orleans for the Super Bowl on Air Force One. “I don’t know how much longer we can take that … at some point, we’re going to lose our patience.”

“I know we have a deal … they dribble in and keep dribbling in … but they are in really bad shape,” Trump said about the Israeli hostages.

30 states spent all their revenue on travel and salaries

A review of how Nigerian state governments spent their money in 2024 shows that 30 state governors raised N2.8 trillion from local sources but spent N3.03 trillion just on running their governments.

The N3.03 trillion went to things like refreshments, payments for attending meetings, local and overseas travel, utility bills, and medical costs.

This spending pattern by state governments has come under heavy criticism, with growing worries about how much they spend compared to how little money they generate.

The amount they collected fell short of their N2.836 trillion target by N24 billion. But the gap between what they earned and what they spent was much bigger at N223 billion.

These state governments also had to pay N1.038 trillion to settle debts they owed to local and foreign lenders, including international organisations.

Read Also: Naira, public borrowing seen pushing money supply growth by 51%

Falana is suing Meta for invasion of privacy

Femi Falana (SAN), has taken Meta Platforms Inc. to court in Lagos, demanding $5 million over claims they invaded his privacy. Meta is the American company that owns Facebook.

Through his lawyer, Olumide Babalola, Falana says Meta published a video titled “AfriCare Health Center” on Facebook, falsely claiming he had a medical condition called ‘Prostatitis’. He says this violates his right to privacy under Nigeria’s constitution.

The case was filed under various Nigerian laws, including the 2023 Data Protection Act and constitutional rights rules.

Court documents show Falana claims the Facebook video is “false, inaccurate, misleading and unfair to him” and breaks Nigerian data protection laws.

Thus, he wants the court to declare that Meta’s continued use of his name, images and supposed voice in the “AfriCare Health Centre” video violates his constitutional right to privacy.

FCCPC won MTN in Court over rights to probe the company

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) has won an important court case that confirms its power to oversee fair competition and protect consumers in all industries, including mobile phone companies. This news came from Ondaje Ijagwu, FCCPC’s communications director, on Sunday.

Judge F.N. Ogazi made this ruling on Friday, February 7, 2025, in Lagos. The case started when Emeka Nnubia, who owns shares in MTN and works as a lawyer, tried to stop FCCPC from investigating MTN Nigeria. Nnubia claimed only the telecommunications regulator (NCC) should oversee phone companies, and worried that FCCPC’s investigation might break data protection laws.

The court decided that while a 2003 law gives NCC power over competition in telecommunications, this must be considered alongside a newer 2018 law that created FCCPC. The judge said the newer law takes priority when there are conflicts with the older one.

This means NCC isn’t the only agency that can regulate competition in telecommunications. Instead, both FCCPC and NCC share this responsibility, allowing them to work together to ensure fair business practices and protect consumers.