My former employer, a medical ventre, was sued in the Magistrate's Court (Criminal) in February 2002 by the EPF for under-contributing my EPF dues. The medical centre pleaded guilty and duly paid up the arrears and dividends as ordered by the court.

In January 2003, I was notified by the EPF about the matter, but I noticed a shortfall of RM1,285.00 in the amount credited to my account.

When the EPF failed to give a plausible explanation, I requested a copy of the court order to verify the facts. Initially, the EPF agreed to accede to my request, but subsequently, I was told verbally, that court orders were 'private and confidential' and as such could not be revealed to the public. I was, however, advised to write to the court for the same.

As advised, I wrote to the Registrar of the Subordinate Courts after which a court interpreter phoned and told me that the court as a rule does not extend copies of court orders to complainants.

Unconvinced, in February last year, I undertook a file search in the same court. While there, I was asked to enter the magistrate's chambers where an EPF officer was present together with the magistrate.

What transpired subsequently is briefly as follows. The magistrate showed me the draft copy of the court order, but the EPF officer interfered and said, among other things, that I did not even have the right to see the document.

The magistrate corrected her and said as per Section 433 of the Criminal Procedure Code, I had the right to see it but could not be allowed to have a copy of it. The magistrate, however, told me that I could have copies of the notes of the court proceedings after submitting an application.

Meanwhile, I found out that it was explicitly stated in Section 433 of the CPC (1990) that I had the right, as a claimant, to not only see the court order but also to have a copy of it.

I wrote to the magistrate concerned for an explanation followed by a reminder on May 20, 2004. To date, there has been no reply. I then complained to the chief justice on July 6 followed by a reminder on Aug 4 but there has been no response either.

The EPF denied me a copy of the court order on specious grounds and the court too, by a strange coincidence, seems to have done the same for reasons best known to it even though the CPC is explicit about my right to the document.

And my complaints to the relevant authorities seem to have fallen on deaf ears. Is this how our civil servants heed the clarion call of our prime minister to improve the public service delivery system?

If they could do this to a professional, just imagine the plight of the layman at their hands! Doesn't the rot in the system stink to high heaven?

I sincerely hope the prime minister himself will look into the matter.