Mrs Latham, who is based in Christchurch, is the managing-director of Innerwink Management Ltd, which was paid $27,939 to manage the 2009 festival.
She issued a written statement yesterday in response to criticism aired this week by festival committee members, but failed to return calls by the Otago Daily Times to her home and on her cellphone.
Calls to her work address went unanswered and an "out of office auto reply" to emails said Mrs Latham was on study leave until April 19.
The committee was declared technically insolvent last month after three successive years of festival losses.
Last year's festival made a loss of $73,143 and owes $80,232 to creditors, but the community board agreed last month to pay the 2009 debts to ensure the event could continue this year.
The Lakes District and Central Otago reported on Thursday that six trusts listed in Mrs Latham's 2009 budget as "cash planned" totalling $34,000, said they had not received any application for funding for the 2009 festival.
Two businesses listed on the budget as a "cash variance" also told The News they had not been approached.
Mr Cadogan said those revelations highlighted for him that he did not have the experience needed for the chairman's job.
In her statement, Mrs Latham said "at no time" had she or Innerwink Management Ltd misled the committee.
The committee had "signed off on all budgets presented to it".
"All grant funding amounts and sponsorship in all budgets presented to the committee by Innerwink were noted as `to be confirmed'," she said.
Applications were made to a number of funding organisations, as directed by the committee. Some were successful and some were not, "and unfortunately the level of funding received was not to the success hoped for".
She had offered to attend the committee's annual meeting to answer any questions but this offer was declined by Mr Cadogan, who said it would not be necessary, Mrs Latham said.
Attempts by the Otago Daily Times to contact Mr Cadogan for his response to these matters yesterday were unsuccessful.
Mrs Latham also said Innerwink had offered to talk to the community board but to date, that offer had not been taken up.
After the 2009 festival, the company had been offered a one-year contract to manage the event again, with an option to renew for a further two years, but it had declined the offer, she said.
Ms Higginson said she did not recall Mrs Latham offering to talk to the board, but would need to check with all her fellow board members, to see whether they had been approached.
The committee would make a statement about the allegations and other festival matters after its meeting on Monday night.
"We'll also look at the budget for the 2010 event, talk about the processes involved, decision-making, accountability and all those sorts of things," she said.
One day into her new role as festival chairwoman, Ms Higginson said she was heartened by how many people had contacted her offering their support and help with this year's event in September.
When asked for comment yesterday, 2009 Festival chairman Steve Battrick said because the matters were being dealt with by the new committee, it was more appropriate for any comment to come from that group.
Mr Battrick resigned in January after concerns about Innerwink.
