On January 2, 1979, all records of the Cape Girardeau court of common pleas shall be transferred to the circuit clerk of Cape Girardeau County. The records shall be kept and preserved by that clerk as a permanent part of the records of the circuit court of Cape Girardeau County. The said clerk is authorized to issue certified copies of these records and his certificate of them shall have the same effect as if certified by a clerk of the original court.