Sure, yes.
There's a valid distinction to be made, because in some cases the perception of conflict of interest is based on some observer's misunderstanding of the facts of the case, and where that is true, then the solution is different. When it really is a mere perception, then one of the things you want to try to do is to fix the misperception and clarify the facts of the matter, but it doesn't mean that the perceived conflict is in no way interesting from an ethical point of view, because it does still need to be dealt with because it stands to erode public confidence or the confidence of stakeholders.
Something needs to be done, but it's going to be a different something than it would be in the case of an actual conflict of interest.