14 December 2022, the day the world stood still for Rocklands residents after their beloved Shoprite was gutted in a devastating early-morning fire.
A year has passed and still residents are left in the dark about the future plans for the empty plot filled with rubble.
Small Enterprise Finance Agency, the company that owns the property, says it is still busy trying to secure funding for reconstruction.
The company’s spokesperson Innocent Ndima tells the Daily Voice that there are plans to rebuild, but no definite timeline.
Ndima says: “We cannot yet say whether it is Shoprite that will be returning, we have not started the negotiation process yet because we are still busy securing funding, but we can say that there are plans to rebuild again.
“We remain committed to finding solutions within the limited resources and decision-making processes that must be navigated through as an agency of the state.”
Rocklands Neighbourhood Watch member and safety activist Valerie Moses says that is as much as they were told at the last meeting.
Moses says: “I can say with confidence that our people are still devastated. At the last meeting there weren’t even proper answers given to our questions and it’s a year later and all we have is brick, stone and sand lying there.”
Resident Francina Williams, 73, says the past year has been bad without Shoprite. Williams says: “That was our go-to shop, especially for us pensioners and disabled persons, now you have to give out money or borrow to get to shops, where you could’ve used that money for bread.”