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Claim: Lt. Landing Sanneh, a former State Guard Commander, asserted that the viral audios of former President Yahya Jammeh were A-generated.
Verdict: False. Our investigations through the use of AI voice detection tools showed that the audio(s) were not manipulated.
Full Text
On October 27, 2025, Lt. Landing Sanneh, the former Commander of the Gambian State Guard, claimed that the viral WhatsApp audio recordings of former President Yahya Jammeh are AI-generated, casting doubt on their authenticity.
This claim was reported by an online news outlet in The Gambia, shortly after Jammeh addressed thousands of his supporters in his hometown of Kanalai via a WhatsApp call from Equatorial Guinea.
During the call, Jammeh informed his supporters that he plans to return home in November, a statement that was met with celebration by many of his followers. However, a former State Guard officer disputed the authenticity of these audios.
“The audio messages… are not Yaya Jammeh’s voice. Either someone is trying to imitate his voice or it’s artificial intelligence (AI),” he stated.
“If you are serious… hire an international neutral lawyer to file his case for his immediate return to The Gambia,” Sanneh claimed.
The post sparked controversy, as some partially believed the former State Guard Commander’s comments regarding the audios.
Momodou Jallow, a senior State House correspondent for the National Television (GRTS) since Jammeh’s time in office, remarked, “Sanneh could be right because it was in English,” referring to the viral audios.
Conversely, Ous-Kebbeh Sanyang expressed a differing opinion, stating, “Sanneh should go and do his homework before disputing the authenticity of the audio(s).”
Another user, Sulayman Bah, commented, “You speak my mind, Mr Sanneh; they are just trying to make something out of it.”
As Sanneh’s claim, which challenges the authenticity of the viral audios, began to circulate widely, DUBAWA sought to investigate and confirm the authenticity.
Verification
To verify the authenticity of the claim, we utilised various AI voice-detection tools to determine whether AI generated the viral audio.
Our findings indicated that 99% of the audio is human-generated and does not contain AI voice; they are authentic.
Below is a screenshot of one of the results obtained from an AI voice detection tool.
We also used ElevenLabs, an AI voice detector, which indicated that only 2% is likely AI-generated.
Its results stated, “Very unlikely,” suggesting that the probability of AI-generated audio is merely 2%.
“It’s very unlikely this audio was generated with ElevenLabs, or that the audio was manipulated.”
We also used various AI algorithm tools to verify whether the audio(s) were manipulated, including Synthid detector, AI or Not, Deepfake Voice Detector, and Resemble AI, among others. However, the results showed no evidence of manipulation.
To further validate the claim, we contacted sources who were present in Kanalai during the WhatsApp call.
Yusupha Jatta, a social media influencer, rejected the assertion that the audios were AI-generated.
“If you listen to the audio very carefully, you will notice Jammeh’s habitual speaking style. He pauses when speaking, and those are characteristics that AI cannot replicate in humans,” he explained.
We also noted the habitual mannerisms of Yahya Jammeh in the viral audios, which reflected his speaking style. During his speech, Jammeh also announced that he had pardoned the party executives whom he had previously expelled.
Conclusion
The claim that the recent viral audios of former Gambian President Yahya Jammeh are AI-generated is false. The evidence indicates that no AI-generated deepfakes are present in the audio clips.
