News broke today that the League of Social Democrats (LSD) is set to announce its closure before July 1. This veteran radical political party once enjoyed a moment in the spotlight, with its founding "three troublemakers" – Wong Yuk-man, Albert Chan (Big Chunk), and Leung Kwok-hung (Long Hair) – all making it into the Legislative Council and turning the chamber into what can only be described as a political circus.
A seasoned political insider recently walked me through this fascinating bit of Hong Kong's political history, and frankly, it's quite the tale. Two things really stood out: first, Jimmy Lai was secretly bankrolling the LSD from behind the scenes, directly funding Long Hair in what looks like a pretty dodgy arrangement. Second, Wong Yuk-man's emergence as some sort of radical "guru" involved systematically attacking the Democratic Party, stealing their supporters, and pushing them away from moderation toward a confrontational dead end.
The LSD is calling it quits on July 1st – both the party and "Long Hair" were secretly bankrolled by Jimmy Lai to the tune of millions.
The Golden Years That Weren't So Golden
When the LSD burst onto the scene in 2006, it immediately positioned itself as the tough guy willing to take on the establishment. The political veteran explained how by 2008, when founding chairman Wong Yuk-man entered the Legislative Council, these "three troublemakers" were causing chaos daily, and the LSD's popularity was going through the roof. Two years later, they were pushing their "Five Constituencies Referendum" campaign, reaching what seemed like unprecedented heights.
But here's where things get interesting. Right at this peak moment, Next Digital boss Jimmy Lai started opening the financial floodgates, secretly pumping money into the LSD. According to documents that surfaced online, during the "Five Constituencies Referendum" period, he quietly donated HK$1 million to the LSD, which was received by vice-chairman To Kwan-hang while chairman Wong Yuk-man was completely left in the dark. The fallout: Yuk-man, who'd already had a falling out with Jimmy Lai, stormed off in anger and set up "People Power" as his own separate outfit.
The Puppet Master's Game Plan
Jimmy Lai's funding of the LSD wasn't some charitable gesture – this was about buying political influence. He wanted to use their appeal among radical crowds to ramp up attacks on the SAR government, with Beijing clearly in the crosshairs. So after Yuk-man's dramatic exit, Lai's financial support for the LSD never stopped, with chunks of cash going directly into Long Hair's personal account.
Here's the kicker: Long Hair was a sitting Legislative Council member at the time. After pocketing Jimmy Lai's donations, he failed to declare them to the Legislative Council, which eventually led to his arrest on suspicion of misconduct in public office. When his trial rolled around in June 2017, the prosecution spilled all sorts of secrets about how Jimmy Lai had been secretly funding him.
The numbers are pretty staggering. Between 2012 and 2014, Jimmy Lai paid out a total of HK$2.05 million to the LSD and Long Hair. In 2012, Lai wrote a HK$9.5 million cheque that went through various company accounts to his associate Mark Simon, who then distributed the cash to four pan-democratic parties. The HK$1 million that went to the LSD was further split up, with portions landing directly in Long Hair's personal account.
Divide and Conquer: Yuk-man's War on the Democrats
The political veteran painted a vivid picture of how Yuk-man systematically went after the Democratic Party starting in 2010. When he established the LSD in 2008, he'd already positioned himself as this "guru" figure for emerging radical forces, clearly eyeing leadership of the entire democratic camp.
His "Five Constituencies Resignation" scheme was clever politics – get five legislators to resign together, then use the by-elections as a de facto referendum. He managed to drag the Civic Party into this mess, but Democratic Party heavyweight Szeto Wah wasn't having any of it. Jimmy Lai, who was apparently the driving force behind the whole operation, even organized a dinner at his house to pressure Uncle Wah and others like Martin Lee to get the Democratic Party on board. Uncle Wah stood firm and refused.
From that point on, Yuk-man launched what can only be described as a sustained assault on the Democratic Party. Even after he and Albert Chan formed "People Power," he kept chipping away at Democratic Party territory, launching vicious attacks on veteran party candidates and successfully peeling away younger, more radical members.
The Endgame Nobody Saw Coming
Caught between Yuk-man's attacks and other radical pressure groups, and with Uncle Wah's steadying influence gone after his death, the Democratic Party's leadership found itself in Jimmy Lai and Martin Lee's "pro-America faction." The party's moderate line finally cracked, and after "Occupy Central" and subsequent protests, it went completely radical, ultimately walking itself off a political cliff.
LSD founder Wong Yuk-man systematically attacked the Democratic Party, stealing their supporters and pushing them toward radical politics that ultimately destroyed them.
Today, the LSD quietly collapses, marking yet another sign that Hong Kong has fundamentally "changed into a different world". Both the party and its behind-the-scenes "financial backers" have met their inevitable downfall – a reminder that in politics, as in life, what goes around tends to come around.
Lai Ting-yiu
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