Interview: outspoken Hong Kong talk show host Albert Cheng on why he wasn't cut out to be a politician

T My father came from China and my mother was born in Hong Kong. There were seven of us in the family. I spent my school years in Yau Ma Tei and Sham Shui Po. We were street kids, we rode bikes, got into fights and played football. Everyone was poor but they still thought of ways to look after each other. People didn't have high expectations. Having new clothes for Lunar New Year, eating chicken during Mid-Autumn Festival - these things made us really happy. Nobody talked about what they wanted to be; the only aim was to get a job as soon as possible to get your family out of poverty and live a better life.

I got into Kowloon Technical School. At that time, the Hong Kong Aircraft Engineering Company, owned by Swire, was hiring apprentices. They offered training to become an engineer as well as a salary. I left school and got a job there. The pay was really good. A police officer made HK$400 - we were paid the same, but we were also studying.

After the Hong Kong leftist riots in 1967, Canada opened up immigration to Chinese people and especially welcomed those with skills. I felt like Hong Kong had no future. It was the colonial period and gweilos had all the say. I wanted to leave for the American dream. Canada counts as the American dream.

I moved to Canada in 1968. My family came with me. The air was good, there was lots of space, I had a house and a car - I was happy. I was an active member of the Chinese community. A few of us were fighting against racial discrimination and trying to raise the status of Chinese people. I joined the New Democratic Party and became one of its community leaders. After a while, I realised I could do more than engineering.