Lai harbour “serious hatred” of di Chinese Communist Party and “obsession to change di Party values to doz of di Western world”, di High Court rule on Monday as dem deliver di verdict in im trial.

Dem say Lai bin hope say dem go comot di party – or, at di very least, say dem go comot di leader Xi Jinping.

Court find Lai guilty on all counts for charges wey dey always deny. Di most serious one – say e collabo wit foreign forces – carry maximum sentence of life in prison.

“Never,” Lai bin tok to dat charge wen e testify, dey argue say e bin only advocate for wetin e believe say na Hong Kong values: “rule of law, freedom, pursuit of democracy, freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of assembly”.

Hong Kong chief executive John Lee, welcome Monday verdict wey say Lai bin use im newspaper to “wantonly create social conflicts” and “glorify violence”.

Di law, e add, neva allow anybody to harm di kontri “under di pretense of human rights, democracy and freedom”.

For 2022 before Wong and Chan leave prison, Lai tell dem to pray wit am, dis surprise Wong.

Since im enter prison, im Catholic faith don grow well well, e dey pray for six hours evRI day and do drawings of Christ wey him dey send to friends.

“Even doh im dey suffer, e no complain nor dey afraid. E dey at peace” na so Wong tok. Peaceful life no be wetin Lai Jimmy dey pursue even wen im comot China for age 12 and do all di work im don do for life.

To Lai, Hong Kong na evri tin wey China no be. Deep capitalism, land of opportunity and limitless wealth and free.

Wen im arrive for 1995, Apple Daily become one of di top selling papers instantly. E work like papers from di US, and cut prices with good aesthetics and layouts.

Former editors for di newspaper talk about how him dey encourage dem. “If you wan do something, him go tell you to do am.

Dey describe am as unconventional and visionary pesin wey no dey fear experiments. Even wen dem never launch iPhone, im dey always say mobile phones go be di future. One of di editors say him “always dey full of ideas, e be like e ask us to create new website everyday”.

Herbert Chow wey be former marketing director for rival brand say even wen im own clothing line, “e no dey afraid to disrupt di industry nor to make enemies.

Na dat kain life him dey live, odawise dem for no get anything like Apple Daily and im for no end up like dis.

One early TV commercial for Apple Daily show wia 48 years Old Lai dey bite di forbidden fruit while dozens of arrows dey face am.

E become self fulfilling prophecy.

To leave China, dat na first time im dey taste somtin wey dey different. E carry passenger luggage for railway station for China, dem give am tip and bar of chocolate.

E bite am, e say Im from Hong Kong, Hong Kong to am dey like heaven unto say im never taste anything like dat.

E tok about him encounter for one documentary for 2007, dem call am ‘Call of di Entrepreneur’.

Life Mao Zedong China no easy as e get waves of oppressive campaigns to industrialize China overnight, to comot capitalists class enemies.

Dem blacklist Lai family wey be business pipo. Im papa run go Hong Kong leave dem behind. Dem him mama go labour camp.

Decades later Lai write about how him and him sisters suffer, say dem go drag dem out of dia homes to watch dia mama as she dey collect punishment. Public shaming later become normal thing to dem. Di first time e write “tears full my eyes and wet my shirt, I no fit dare to make move, my body dey burn wit humiliation.”

Im grandma tell am say you go need become businessman even if na to dey sell only seasoned peanuts.

So for 12 e waka enta Hong Kong among millions wey run from di mainland and run for di devastating rule of Mao over di years.

Di day im arrive wit 80 odas from di bottom of one fishing boat, one mitten factory hire am. E describe di long working hours as “very happy time, time wey I know say I get future”.

Na for dia one of him co-workers help am learn English. Years later, e begin dey give interviews and dey testify for court dey speak fluent English.

By di time e dey early 20’s e don dey manage textile factory and afta e make money from stock market, e open im own business ‘Comitex Knitters’ for age 27.

Business dey always carry Lai go New York, and for one of dose trips e see one book wey change him worldview: “Di road to Serfdom by Nobel prize winning economist Freidrich Hayek wey be champion of free market. E learn how pipo dey change dia world through dia reactions and exchange of information. E say dat na Hong Kong strength.

E read di book plenti times and read oda books wey di author write. E say “I wan turn di authors thoughts into my backyard garden. I wan buy garden not flowers”, na so e tok for interview for 2009.

Afta one decade wey im don dey do dis manufacturing business, e come dey bored for di business come open him own clothing line Giordano for 1981.

Di fashion line grow successful sotey Tadeshi Yanai seek advice from him wen him own Japanese label Uniqlo luang dia own stores.

Lai launch stores for China, as di kontri begin open after di death of Mao. Im dey happy say “China go change like di western world” na so e tok for one documentary for 2007.

Den for 1989 Beijing crush pro democracy protests for Tiananmen Square: dis shock Lai and Hong Kong as dem wan return Hong Kong under Chinese rule for 1997 under new agreement between China and UK.

Giordano begin sale tees wey dem put photos of leaders of di Tiananmen protest and anti Beijing slogans. Dem put pro-democracy banners for stores across Hong Kong.

About one million pipo match for Hong Kong to show support to students protesters for Beijing.

Lai say him “no feel anything about China until and wan forget dat part of him life, but all of a sudden e come be like my mother dey call me from di darkness of di night.”

Di following year, Lai launch new magazine wey him call ‘Next’ and for 1994 e publish open letter to Li Peng “di Butcher of Beijing” wey play key role for di massacre wey happun for Tiananmen Square. E call am “di son of a turtle egg wit zero intelligence”.

Beijing vex, between 1994 and 1996, Giordano flagship store for Beijing and 11 other franchise close. Lai sale him shares and step down as chairman.

“If I go on making money, e go mean nothing to me, but if I go into media business, den I go deliver information as choice and choice na freedom”, na so Lai tok for di 2007 interview.

E later become very active participant for di Hong Kong pro democracy movement. E meet with leaders to discuss strategies, na wetin Lee Wing Tat talk, him be former lawmaker for di Democratic Party.

E become outspoken critic of di CCP. E write for 1994 say “I dey entirely oppose di Communist party unto say I hate anything wey dey restrain personal liberty”.

E also start to dey voice out against di planned handover over of Hong Kong to China by Britain for 1997.

Afta more dan one century of rule, Hong Kong feel proud t return to motherland but ask “why we go love di motherland even wen we no get freedom”?

During di handover, Jiang Zemin wey be di leader den promise Hong Kong pipo and di city say dem go get high degree of autonomy for di next 50 years.

For 2014, sake of say Beijing no allow free election for Hong Kong, e spark new movement, dis na turning point for Lai.

Protesters march for city main commercial districts for 79 days. Lai dey come out from 9am to 5pm daily, “when police begin fire teargas, I dey wit Fatty,” na so Former lawmaker Lee tok.

Di movement stop wen court order make dem clear protest sites, but goment no do wetin di pipo want.

Five years later for 2019, Hong Kong burst again, dis time na sake of controversial plan to return dem to China.

Wetin been dey go on as protest, turn violent. Di city become battleground ground. Riot full ground, while police dey throw teargas, rubber bullets, water cannons and live rounds.

Lai dey for di front of di protest, e serve 20 months jail time sake of say e join four unauthorized gatherings. One protester tell BBC say e “dey surprised to see Lai, e be busy business man, but e still come out”.

Apple Daily provide coverage for di anti govment movement.

Govment advisor Ronny Tong say Lai follow cause di protest sake of how Apple Daily carri false slogan, anti extradition to China wey cause pipo to imagine wetin no dey real.

Weda Apple Daily play bad role or weda na Lai do di damage be wetin dey for di 156 days national security trial.

Lai instruct di editorial team to “urge pipo to enta street” na so Cheung Kim hung tok. Im be former chief executive for Apple Daily parent company Next Digital. Him be defendant but dem turn am to witness. Afta di National Security law take effect, dem raid di newspaper two times and shut am down for 2021.

During di protest, Lai fly to US wia e meet den vice president Mike Pence to tok about di situation for Hong Kong. One month bifor di national security law enta, Lai launch controversial campaign, upon say challenged dey, e urge pipo to send letters to di den president Donald Trump to save Hong Kong.

Court say all dese ones amount to public appeal for foreign govment to interfere for di internal affairs of Hong Kong.

Tong say “nobody for dia right mind suppose tink say Hong Kong fit undergo any kain political reform with out di acceptance of Beijing”, na wetin Tong tok. Di protest for 2014 and 2019 dey totally against common sense.

Beijing say Hong Kong don move from “chaos to governance and unto greater prosperity”, sake of di national security and patriotic only parliament.

But critics including hundreds of thousands of Hong Kong pipo wey don run from di kontri say dissent don dey stifled and freedom for di city don dey badly curbed.

Lee di lawmaker follow for among dem, “wen I first come UK, I get nightmares, I bin feel very guilty, why we go live for oda places freely while our good friends dey jailed”.

Lai family don dey call for him release for years, dem site concerns about him health as im dey diabetic, but dem don reject dia calls so far. Di govment and Lai legal team for Hong Kong say dem dey meet him medical needs.

Carmen Tsang wey be Lai daughter inlaw wey dey live for Hong Kong wit her family say her children dey miss dia grandpa and di big dinners him dey hold every two weeks.

Im loud voice bin dey scare her daughter wen dem bin dey younger but “dem like to dey go grandpa place… dey tink say him dey funny”.

She no tink say di kain Hong Kong dem get now get space for Lai.

“If speck of dust dey your eyes, you go just comot am, right?”