Voting Station

Oliver Tambo

Please vote to see the next celebrity.

Advocate

The Resume

    (October 27, 1917-April 24, 1993)
    Born in Nkantolo, South Africa
    Founding member of the ANC Youth League (1944)
    Exiled in Great Britain and Zambia (1960-90)
    President of the African National Congress (1967-91)

Why he might be annoying:

    He gave final approval to the Church Street bombing in Pretoria that killed 19 people (May 20, 1983).
    He said, 'In the past, we were saying the ANC will not deliberately take innocent life. But now, looking at what is happening in South Africa, it is difficult to say civilians are not going to die.' (1985)
    Johannesburg International Airport was named after him (2005) even though the post-apartheid government's official rationale for changing the same airport's name from Jan Smuts Airport in 1994 had been that airports should not be named after political figures.

Why he might not be annoying:

    He was expelled from the University of Fort Hare for leading a student strike (1940).
    Before joining the ANC, he taught math and science; Desmond Tutu was one of his students.
    He teamed with Nelson Mandela to open the first black law practice in South Africa.
    His wife Adelaide and their children had to be smuggled out of South Africa to join him in London.
    His lobbying skills helped convince the US Congress to impose economic sanctions on South Africa (1987).
    He held together a faction-riven ANC through years when the prospect of success seemed remote at best.

Credit: C. Fishel


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    In 2023, Out of 54 Votes: 46.30% Annoying