Answer
Yes, there is an important difference.
An innocent but unqualified person can gradually become purified if he is sincere. Lack of qualification alone is not the real problem.
The real problem arises when someone misuses the power entrusted to him.
A person may lack the skill to properly discharge leadership responsibilities, and that is one issue. But deliberately abusing authority for personal purposes or using one's position against the Vaiṣṇava community is something entirely different.
King Vena, for example, began insulting saintly persons and misused his authority. Similarly, leadership must carefully ensure that no one uses power to harm or oppress innocent devotees.
Leaders must remain vigilant so that authority is always exercised as service and never as an instrument of exploitation.
