Ricky’s Revenge, the HKTV chief’s possible political push, may be more hype over substance

The saga of Ricky Wong Wai-kay and his troubled television station would make better drama than any of the soap operas it has so far produced.

Almost three years ago, Hong Kong was practically up in arms when the Leung Chun-ying government refused HKTV a free-to-air licence, despite a massive investment and ready-made programmes all set for broadcast. This week, Wong announced he might – just might – run in the September Legislative Council election on an ABC platform: Anyone But CY. Call it Ricky’s Revenge.

Like many people, I thought the government’s rationale for HKTV’s rejection was ridiculous. One reason officials cited was that the station was not financially secure. That’s rich considering how ATV collapsed because of internal mismanagement and couldn’t even pay staff for months while regulators and labour officials were asleep at the wheel.

A conspiracy theory at the time was that the government was afraid HKTV might become a pan-democratic platform. If that were true, its worst fear has come to pass, as the media maverick now threatens to run for Legco with the express intention of going against Leung’s reappointment. The trouble is, that’s hardly a platform or policy agenda. It barely distinguishes Wong from potential rivals. It’s not just pan-democrats; many Beijing loyalists are upset with Leung and have openly worked against him. So join the queue, it’s a long one.