President Rodrigo Duterte is highly popular among Filipinos but his decision to terminate the Visiting Forces Agreement is clearly at odds with the pulse of the same majority who adores him.

“The administration’s latest move, to terminate the Visiting Forces Agreement, is totally out of sync with the desires of the Filipino people,” said Social Weather Stations (SWS) president Mahar Mangahas in his Inquirer column.

From China’s bullying in the West Philippine Sea to the invasion of Chinese workers in the country, Mangahas said majority of Filipinos were averse to China and its intentions.

“The antipathy of Filipinos toward China has been clear for a very long time. The deep distrust in China returned, and persists up to now,” Mangahas said.

In contrast, Filipinos think Americans are awesome. “The country that Filipinos trust most has always been the United States (net +72 in 2019Q3); the one they trust least is China (net -33). Only two of the first 12 trust ratings of China during the Duterte period have been positive,” said Mangahas.

“ʎ Seventy-eight percent say that relations with the United States are more important than relations with China. Only 12 percent say that relations with China are more important,” he added.