JAMAICANS THINK BOB MARLEY, MISS LOU OR USAIN BOLT, SHOULD BE THE NEXT NATIONAL HERO!

Bob Marley, Louise Bennett-Coverley and Usain Bolt are at the top of the list of people Jamaicans believe should be given membership in the Order of National Hero.

As the country moves through the constitutional reform process, participants were asked in the latest Don Anderson poll if only one of the three could be named at a time, who should be named first?

Unsurprisingly, most Jamaicans are in favor of reggae legend Bob Marley being named the country’s eighth national hero, with 44 per cent of respondents giving him their stamp of approval.

Another 36 per cent believe cultural icon Dr. Louise Bennett-Coverley, affectionately called ‘Miss Lou’, should be given that honor first.

In an unusual third place position is track legend Usain Bolt, with 20 per cent of respondents saying he should be named a national hero before anyone else.

Pollster and head of Market Research Limited, Don Anderson, said more men are in favor of the honor being given to Bob Marley while more women prefer if Louise Bennett-Coverley were given the nod first.

“When we look at men, perhaps not surprisingly, 53 per cent of them said Bob Marley, as against 44 per cent overall…. When you ask the females, 41 per cent of them said Louise Bennett should be, and Bob Marley, second. Usain Bolt again comes in third, some distance behind.”

Mr. Anderson said the frequency with which the three are named suggests it’s time for at least one of them to be made a national hero.

“I think there is sufficient time series of data to be able to ‘call it’ now, as they would say. And it would definitely point to the belief amongst a significant portion of Jamaicans that…if we only had one opening for a new national hero, that Bob Marley should be that hero. And if there was two, then Louise Bennett should be the second,” he suggested.

According to the poll, a combined 41 per cent of respondents said they could not think of a new candidate to be named national hero.

The National Heroes and Awards Act outlines that the honor is bestowed by the Governor General on the advice of the Prime Minister.

An advisory committee is also required for the Order of National Hero to determine whether people – living or dead – should receive membership.