The idea of utopia or a perfect society for most people characterises exemplary citizens; people who willingly uphold values and morals that are in keeping with an established ideology.

We have expanded the concept by creating ‘superheroes’ — fictional and real on the off-chance that just in case anything should go wrong these characters will be available to right them. Fortunately for us, some of these characters have emerged of their own volition, their prompts being any one or combination of the following: intrinsic motivation, creativity, innate sense of morality and obligation to do good, or simply daring to be different and upset the status quo or overturn the proverbial applecart.

Some countries like Jamaica have the status of a national hero established as the highest achievable honour. The seven whom we have conferred the honour on had performed feats perhaps less flashy than a Spiderman, but which are heroic, nonetheless.

On a more serious note, the Order of National Hero was created by the National Honours and Awards Act, which was passed by Jamaica’s Parliament in 1969. Since then, we have selected seven people whom we have deemed worthy of the country’s highest honour.

We love our national heroes, and we have all been mesmerised by stories of their efforts but if I may, I’d like to argue that there are some who are just as deserving of the honour who are yet to be granted their earned consideration. In my opinion, chief among them is none other than Robert Nesta (Bob) Marley.

I fully expect my suggestion to be met with routine resistance, so I’ll interject with the pre-emptive “why not?”. What reason do we have to disqualify Bob Marley as a national hero?

Yes, he has already been awarded the Order of Merit (OM) for having achieved “International Distinction in the Arts”. However, to settle at OM is to confine Bob Marley to the status of a stellar international artiste when he was all that and much more.

According to the Jamaica Information Service, “The honour of the Order of National Hero may be conferred upon any person who was born in Jamaica or is, or at the time of his or her death was, a citizen of Jamaica and rendered to Jamaica service of a most distinguished nature.” This is the official criterion by which a national hero is selected so it only makes sense that the case be made using said criterion. Bob Marley was born in Jamaica on February 6, 1945 and was a Jamaican at the time of his death on May 11, 1981. Those are the facts but whether or not he was “rendered to Jamaica service of a most distinguished nature” is a matter of opinion, so that I’ll argue.

How was he heroic? He dedicated the bulk of his craft to highlighting and combating injustices of the island as well as giving a voice to the disenfranchised sectors of Jamaica. He never incited physical or violent rebellions like some of our most beloved national heroes but he was a reggae pioneer. “Reggae” comes from the term “rege-rege” which means “rags” or “ragged clothes” so the very music he pioneered and championed was born from the will to uplift the lower class. Through his music he led a rebellion against all factions that perpetuated inequality and systems that exclusively favoured the haves. He withstood institutionalised classism becoming a hero among the have-nots.

Many of us are old enough to remember how integral of a role Bob Marley played in quelling the political unrest of 1978 where he preached “One Love”. Now “One Love” is a global anthem and is commonly recited by hundreds of thousands of attendants at sports stadiums and arenas. One Love was also appointed the theme song for the Jamaica Tourist Board was voted the Anthem of the Millennium by the British Broadcasting Company. The message in One Love ties in perfectly with what our forefathers meant when they coined our motto as even on an international scale, Out of Many [we are] One People.

Bob Marley is immortalised by his timeless music and as such, his message has served and will continue to serve generations to come. There is strength in unity and as long as this is the case then there will always be a place in society for Bob Marley. He has been an unofficial Brand Jamaica ambassador for decades and we are proud to be represented and associated with his efforts.

Initially, Bob Marley’s music was much more appreciated internationally than locally. Ironically, it is the same way in which he is recognised as a hero worldwide before we consider him a hero in our own nation.

In making the case for my proposed national hero, I am fully aware of his transgressions. However, the Bible upon which our constitution is built reads “Let he who is without sin cast the first stone”. Who can correctly claim that any of our established heroes were saints?

Based on the criterion outlined, how is Bob Marley not qualified to be a national hero? If after all that has been said and documented we are still on the fence then perhaps we ought to restructure our national hero criteria. After which we must reconsider our existing seven because Bob Marley is no less a hero than Norman Manley.

Hugh Graham is CEO of Paramount Trading Ltd, and Member of Parliament for St Catherine North Western.