The day I took MAS to court. It was 1994 when I was working for Pamol Plantations an Unilever Company with plantations in Johor and Sabah. Once a month I had to visit Pamol’s estates in Sandakan in Sabah. My wife used to pack my bags for such journeys. In those days there were no hand phones and contact with Sabah estates were with hand held contraptions which were the hand phones in the early 90’s. She used to pack my phone in my traveling bag every time I visit Sabah. That day was no different. We had to change planes at Kota Kinabalu to fly to Sandakan. My Secretary Susan called me on my handset when I reached Kota Kinabalu. The phone was not with me but in my luggage at Kota Kinabalu about to be transported to Sandakan. When the phone rang the airport orderlies who were foreign workers heard the ringing sound emanating from my bag and stole the phone from my bag. When I landed in the estate I wanted to call Home but could not find the phone. My wife confirmed she did place it in my bag. When I came back to KL I made a police report of my loss. I wrote to MAS accusing them of pilferage by their transport workers at Sandakan and asked them to compensate me for my loss. They refused and I initiated a case in the Small Claims Court as the loss was less than RM500/-.A date was set for hearing my case after a mention. On the date of hearing I was in Court with my wife and daughter who had just begun practice as a lawyer. I did not know at that time that at the Small Claims Court the claimant cannot be represented by Counsel while the Defendant was permitted legal representation. At the first hearing I had to have my wife in the witness stand to explain to the Court she had indeed packed my phone in the bag. My daughter was in court too. If not mistaken she had just started working for a Chinese law firm.
MAS was represented by a junior lawyer a Punjabi girl as MAS heard I was unrepresented and it would be a walkover. When it came to cross examination of witnesses the Junior lawyer found it tough asked for adjournment which was readily given. MAS ticket had a clause that it will only cover costs of “valuables” lost in transit. I was then a member of the MU Law Library by virtue of the fact I handled prosecutions for my Department. I read up a book on interpretations by a law publisher “Sweet and Maxwell” which defined what was a valuable.
At the next hearing MAS brought in a senior lawyer from its Panel. Counsel for MAS felt a valuable is either gold, diamond or other precious stone. On the next date of hearing I presented my case and proved the handphone was a valuable. The magistrate bought my story and ordered MAS to pay me RM500/-. MAS was happy to do it as its legal costs would be much higher if it goes on appeal. It was a small win but proved laymen could seek justice in our courts.
After my Higher School Certificate examination, I was appointed as a labour officer. This job paid well enough that I could finally afford a car for work. It involved a fair amount of travelling, the allowances for which could well cover my petrol bills. This first car was a second hand Volkswagen 1200, reg. AF 1085 in white. However I had just learnt driving and was not confident in taking out the car for my duties. So for the first few weeks, a friend of mine agreed to be a co-driver while I learnt to drive in my neighbourhood. Once I gained confidence, I told my friend that I was confident and he need not assist me while I drove around. The first day of independent driving, I reversed into a child’s tricycle. Fortunately the child had abandoned the bike in my driveway and went away to look for other pursuits that drew her attention. There was a dent to the rear of my vehicle that would require some money to have it fixed back into its original shape. ...
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