He has spent the last three years repositioning the Philippines from a staunchly pro-American stance toward a neutral stance in order to maneuver between China and the United States.

The effort of the detractors of President Rody Duterte to isolate the President before the global community, particularly the demand of Vice President Leni Robredo to play hardball against China, has backfired.

Robredo, parroting the American-prescribed line, has said in a Reuters interview that “the Philippines would gain more from joining the United States, Australia and Britain in freedom of navigation exercises and drafting conventions with claimants like Malaysia and Vietnam to try to isolate China.”

Instead, the call had alienated the opponents of Rody from Filipinos while objective observers had taken an opposite view and are now hailing the President as a brilliant tactician.

Singapore-based analyst Maa Zhi Hong who regularly writes for South China Morning Post, Asia Times and Nikkei Asia Review noted that many “must be perplexed as to why an exceedingly popular president who is seemingly in tune with the population on almost every issue has been remarkably persistent in pursuing a radically different foreign policy than his predecessors,” referring to the China pivot of Rody.

“The Filipino people should be more understanding toward their president and recognize that he is a brilliant strategist,” according to Maa.

The Philippines under yellow president Noynoy Aquino filed a case against China in an arbitral court at The Hague and obtained a favorable ruling, including the invalidation of the nine-dash line claim.

The decision, however, was unenforceable since China had not recognized the proceeding from the start.

“It is laughable to suggest that a man who, during his time as mayor of Davao City, transformed it from one of the most crime-ridden cities in the country into one of the safest in the world does not know what he is doing,” Maa averred.

He explained that “being pro-China does not mean Duterte is kowtowing to China; he is not betraying his country but rather he is trying to save his country.”

The expert on regional politics pursued his point saying, despite the noise generated in the last two years because of the US-China trade war, the shift in the global center of power to Asia is inevitable and irreversible.

He shared the view that it is only a matter of time before China becomes the predominant power in Asia and it is important for the Philippines to secure a breathing space “to maneuver around the big powers.”

He credited Rody’s foresight saying that he knew that if nothing is done, the country will be caught flat-footed by the changes in the Asia-Pacific power structure.

“He is a man ahead of his time. He has spent the last three years repositioning the Philippines from a staunchly pro-American stance toward a neutral stance in order to maneuver between China and the United States,” according to Maa.

Further, the Singapore pundit saw Rody the way most Filipinos have gotten used to in his manners and style of putting his message across.

“Though he may be brash or even crude in his remarks from time to time, Duterte’s foreign policy is quite similar to Singapore’s in dealing with the big powers,” Maa went, adding that the Philippines will remain a friend of the United States but at the same time, it has deepened its friendship with China, especially on the economic front.

“The currently overwhelming media narrative is that the promised investment boom from China has failed to materialize. That narrative may have some merits but to suggest that direct Chinese investments have not increased is not true,” he noted.

Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas data showed that Chinese foreign direct investment into the country in 2015 was just $570,000 compared to $200 million in 2018.

China-Philippine trade also has boomed and in 2018, China beat Japan to become the largest foreign buyer of Philippine bananas, a major industry in Rody’s home region of Davao.

Media portrayal of the Asian giant overlooks successful Chinese-funded projects that have been completed without any controversy, Maa noted.

“For example, the Angat Water Utilization and Aqueduct Improvement Project, a Chinese construction project, was finished eight months ahead of time and had a far better cost-overrun record than projects undertaken by other nations,” he explained.

China’s richest man Jack Ma purchased a substantial minority stake in Mynt, a financial-technology corporation co-owned by Globe Telecom and the Ayala Corporation, he also cited.

The analyst said investing in local companies hypothetically helps to free up the capital of existing Filipino partners, allowing them to invest somewhere else.

Direct foreign investments in Philippine companies also provide a much-needed capital boost to expand their operations domestically and create many jobs for Filipinos.

Foreign investment in local companies is underestimated and underappreciated in the Philippines because of the public’s fixation on large-scale infrastructure investments. “In order for the Philippines to be taken seriously and speak with a strong voice, it is vital for it to develop economically, and Chinese investments have helped in reaching the goal,” Maa posited.

The US is a major trading and security partner of the Philippines. However, Maa said for the United States, the Philippines has always been more important for its strategic location than for its economic potential.

“This is one of the reasons there is little US interest in developing the civilian economy of the Philippines. The fact of the matter is that the US is content with a poor but politically stable Philippines in order to suit its regional interests, which are aimed squarely against China,” Maa underscored.

Maa’s view was that Duterte has long “recognized this harsh fact and wants to avoid his country being used by the US as a pawn in its conflict with China.”

Key to the pursuit of Rody is that unlike his predecessors, the President has made it clear that he is not afraid to stand up to the US if needed.

That is where Robredo and his yellow masters are totally disconnected with the population as they continue to push an agenda which favors the US and not the country’s interest.