The University of Johannesburg’s Association for the Advancement of Black Accountants of Southern Africa (ABASA) team came out on top at the Joburg branch’s Big Debate Competition that took place on Saturday, 23 August 2025.
The ABASA UJ team knocked out the ABASA WITS and ABASA NWU teams to officially claim the 2025 ABASA Debate crown.
ABASA provides a platform for networking, mentorship, and professional development, helping to ensure that Black South Africans realise their full potential within the profession.
“Our mandate as ABASA UJ is to bridge the gap between students and the industry by hosting events that expose them to the field. We work closely with the Department of Accountancy in everything we do and they are a great support to us,” said Lisakhanya Mkhwambi, ABASA UJ Chairperson.
UJ’s affiliation with ABASA dates back 13 years and has grown in popularity from 609 members last year to doubling that number to 1300 members this year.
To prepare for the competition, members of ABASA UJ are encouraged to apply to enter for an internal competition first that is held in collaboration with the UJ Debating Union. From there individuals are selected to form part of the official team for the main competition.
The annual competition sees the students from provincial branches debate a range of topics. This year’s topics included inflation and the rising cost of living, entrepreneurship and hybrid work. The teams had 3 weeks to prepare. For the final round of the competition the top two teams – UJ and NWU – were given a topic to prepare for in just 5 minutes. The topic focused on whether or not the accountancy profession is doing enough to promote social mobility.
In addition to the overall victory, the UJ team also secured top honours in the following categories:
- Best Speaker of the Day – Wandisa Maseko, First Year Bcom Accounting Student
- Best Rebuttal – Ayanda Rongo, Second Year Bcom Accounting student
- Best Collaborative Team – ABASA UJ
Wandisa Maseko was excited to be part of the winning team and to receive acknowledgement as the Best Speaker.
“I am still on cloud nine after being crowned the best speaker at the recent Big Debate Competition. I have to thank my mentor Ethan Mbaxa for introducing me to ABASA. His advice to join the organisation and leverage its opportunities is what led to this moment and I am grateful for his guidance. As the first speaker, I felt the weight of responsibility in setting the tone for our team. I am still in awe that I was recognised as the best speaker, especially considering that it is my first year in university and I only had the experience of a beginner in debate. The UJ ABASA committee provided a fantastic platform for me to challenge myself, and our coaches were relentless in their dedication, ensuring weekly practice sessions after classes even during test week. Their constructive criticism and guidance were invaluable. This experience is definitely my highlight of the year, and I will always be grateful for the opportunity.”
Mkhwambi added that the vision for the ABASA UJ team this year was to level up after placing second in last year’s competition.
“I feel truly honoured and proud of this achievement. Winning against WITS and NWU, and securing four out of five categories — including the overall win is a testament to the dedication, talent, and spirit of our students,” said Mkhwambi. “This victory is a powerful reflection of that commitment. It not only showcases the excellence within ABASA UJ, but also highlights the strength of the Accountancy@UJ department. It proves that our students are not only academically capable but also thought leaders who can engage critically and collaboratively on important issues.”
He encouraged aspiring accountants to be active and join associations like ABASA early in their academic journey and remain dedicated and committed.
Prof Ahmed Mohammadali Haji, Head of Department in the Department of Accountancy said the department was immensely proud of ABASA UJ for this outstanding achievement and for consistently being such excellent ambassadors of Accountancy@UJ.
“This is a true reflection of hard work, dedication, and passion, closely aligned to the values of excellence and professionalism that we strive to instill in Accountancy@UJ students. We celebrate this accomplishment as it highlights the impact that UJ continues to make in shaping the future of the accounting profession.”
