‘Happy birthday, Uncle Toad’ — fanbase shows its love for Jiang Zemin
Pop art tributes appear on Chinese social media congratulating the former leader as he turns 90, but messages seem to carry jab at the current, more formal president
He may have been ridiculed while in power but former Chinese president Jiang Zemin has inspired a wave of nostalgic political pop art on his 90th birthday, with many seeing the outpouring as an indirect jab at present policies.
“Happy birthday, Uncle Toad! One more second!” a WeChat user wrote on Wednesday under a cartoon of a rectangular pair of glasses in the shape of a “90”.
The meaning of the post is well understood on the mainland, despite complete official media silence on the milestone.
“Uncle Toad” is a nickname originally used to poke fun at his physical appearance and the glasses are the shape of the emblematic eyewear Jiang wore throughout his time at the top. “One more second” is a slogan used by a growing group of his admirers to wish him long life, after repeated reports about Jiang’s ailing health.
