He was 89.
Pekkala, former speaker of parliament and former finance minister, died in the evening of a sudden illness, a close relative told the news agency STT.
Pekkala was born at Haapavesi in Northern Ostrobothnia and worked as the director of Haapavesi Osuuspankki for more than three decades since 1952.
He was elected a parliament member for the first time in 1970 and served as a lawmaker until the mid-1980s.
He was appointed the speaker of parliament in 1978 and later the finance minister until 1986.
After that Pekkala had worked as the provincial governor of Oulu until 1991.
