Chong Chan-yau is hoping to turn defeat into victory. A fortnight after being beaten in the Legislative Council polls, the blind equal opportunities crusader is building on the progress he made while reaching out to voters.
'I have listened to a lot of people's opinions and grievances. I should not forget them,' he says. 'I do not think I should act as if nothing has happened.' By garnering more than 10,000 votes in his bid for a Hong Kong Island seat, Mr Chong surprised his rivals - the Democrats, the Democratic Alliance for the Betterment of Hong Kong (DAB) and another eventual winner, Christine Loh Kung-wai.
His campaign drew praise - as well as votes - from members of rival campaign teams, including the Liberal Party's Ada Wong Ying-kay. Operating on a relatively paltry budget of $500,000 (which ballooned to $700,000), he also won praise from a critical media and at times posed a threat to the charismatic Ms Loh.
'I know people started to understand me,' he says.
Political analysts believe he will be a much stronger candidate in 2000, but Mr Chong is thus far declining to make a commitment to run next time. For now, he wants to exploit the prominence he has achieved by spreading his message to as many as possible.
The issues he highlighted during his campaign - equal opportunities, poverty, unemployment and medical services - remain high on his agenda. Oxfam, the charity of which he is fund-raising director, has formed an alliance with a handful of non-governmental organisations to tackle unemployment (their first action will be a protest on June 21).
The movement will focus on unemployment in all sectors, although the disabled in particular are believed to be suffering from the economic downturn.