A recently dismissed Catholic nun, Sister Anastasia Kenzie, has opened up about her ordeal of alleged sexual harassment within the Nigerian Catholic Church and her controversial dismissal from the convent.
Sister Kenzie, who had been a member of the Congregation of the Mothers of Perpetual Help of the Archangel Sisters since 2015, spoke during an interview on Arise television on Monday, October 13, 2025.
She recounted a harrowing experience marked by what she described as institutional silence and retaliation after she reported cases of harassment by priests and a university lecturer.
The case, which has generated nationwide attention, began after Anastasia accused a Head of Department at Veritas University, Abuja, an institution owned by the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, of sexually harassing her. She claimed that after rejecting his advances, her life “began to unravel,” with the university and her congregation allegedly conspiring to silence her.
But in a recorded response that went viral online, a nun from her congregation dismissed Anastasia’s claims, insisting that the church was ready to “fight for her” only if she could provide concrete proof.
“We will come out and fight for you, sister, if you provide evidence that such happened,” she said
The speaker accused Sister Anastasia of tarnishing the image of the congregation that “loved, trusted, and saw her as the light” of their order, urging her to present verifiable evidence rather than “destroy the institution that raised her.”
However, during the interview, Anastasia countered these claims, stating that she indeed possesses both video and audio recordings proving the harassment she suffered but has withheld them for legal and personal safety reasons.
She described her dismissal as unlawful and uncanonical, arguing that the Catholic Church’s own canon law does not permit the expulsion of a finally professed sister without due process.
The gravity of her allegations have raised serious questions about accountability, transparency, and the protection of women within Catholic institutions in Nigeria.
