by Our Reporters
The Imo State Government, through a press statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to the State Governor, Oguwike Nwachuku, on November 28, 2024 announced that it had signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with Janpur Group headed by Mr. Mohammed Shafic.
The statement said the MOU was for Janpur Group to revive moribund companies in the state, including Achara Ugbo Farm in Emekuku, Imo Standard Shoe Industry, and Nsu Tile Industry at Ehime Mbano, and possibly establish new ones.
It also said that Janpur Group is noted for diversified discipline ranging from shipping, power, agriculture, manufacturing, agro-businesses, heavy duty equipment procurement, among others.
But checks by Nigeria News Source point to the non-existence of a business named Janpur Group.
Google search
Driven by curiosity and to ascertain the seriousness of the Imo State Government regarding revival of moribund industries in the state, Nigeria News Source searched Google for Janpur Group.
Surprisingly, our search could not find any Janpur Group. But the name Janpur does exist.
A city in India
But there is a city in India named Jaunpur. Wikipedia says Jaunpur is a city and a municipal board in Jaunpur district in the Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is located 228 km southeast of state capital Lucknow. Demographically, Jaunpur resembles the rest of the Purvanchal area in which it is located.
A further search threw up another village named Janpur in Birsa Tehsil in Balaghat District of Madhya Pradesh State, India. Belonging to Jabalpur Division, Janpur is located 71km towards East from District headquarters Balaghat, 17km from Birsa, and 422km from State capital Bhopal. Janpur’s 1,479 inhabitants speak Hindi as their local language.
But there’s Jampur Group
The company, Jampur Group, is described as operator of a group company based in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, that caters to sectors such as shipping, power, mining, equipment and trading solutions to all countries on the continent and operates through a network of local offices in all major markets of Africa, Europe and Asia.
Jampur Group is a privately held company founded in 1985 and currently has 34 employees. Its CEO is Mohammad Shafiq.
Which company did Imo Government sign MOU with: Janpur or Jampur?
The statement by Oguwike Nwachuku said Janpur Group which the Imo State Government signed an MOU with is headed by Mr. Mohammed Shafic. But our search shows that there is no Janpur Group but there is a Jampur Group headed by Mohammad Shafiq as CEO.
From every indication, it is not a case of the Imo State Government signing an MOU with a non-existent company. Rather, it is a case of the Imo State Government, represented by the Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to the State Governor, not knowing the name of the company it signed a deal with.