Kudos to a conscientious civil servant

SYSTEMS and procedures are only a guide, it is the people who make or break it.

I was reminded of this when dealing with the Human Resources Ministry’s Kuala Lumpur Manpower Department recently. I was handling a matter on behalf of ex-estate workers.

I was first directed to an officer who was about to retire and showed a lack of interest in assisting me on the matter.

However, I was persistent and after my third visit, I was advised to send an email to the department, which I did, followed by a phone call.

I called the director’s office and was informed that an officer would return my call shortly.

Within ten minutes, I received a call from the director’s office enquiring about my issue and offering assistance if required.

I informed the woman on the other end of my email to the department which I had sent two days ago.

She requested that I resend the email to her and her boss via their respective personal emails.

I was impressed with the courtesy, effort and diligence of this officer and asked for her name, which was Noorshedaar Abd Karim.

Unfortunately, I was unable to resend the email immediately as I was in a meeting.

Noorshedaar called me twice and politely asked if I had sent the email as requested.

She called me back upon finally receiving the email and assured me that she would inform her boss who was out of town.

On the same day, she reverted with an appointment to meet her superior two days later.

At the meeting in Jalan Ampang, I met the department’s director, Mohd Asri Abdul Wahab, as well as several senior officers.

Mohd Asri was extremely courteous and professional throughout the meeting.

I made it a point to highlight that I was impressed with Noorshedaar’s pro-activeness and diligence towards her work which had made this meeting possible, thereby enabling us to come up with a solution for a longstanding issue.

I believe it is employees like Noorshedaar who make the difference in any office, especially in the civil service.

Her prompt and conscientious efforts helped me find a solution for the issue I was handling.

Noorshedaar, you are an exemplary staff who should be rewarded and appreciated

Syabas and keep up the good work.