DEMOCRATIC Alliance leader Helen Zille says her party will turn around the Ikageng municipality in Potchefstroom where children play in rubbish that has not been collected for months.

"You don't have to live like this here in Ikageng. You don't have to live in filth because your council doesn't collect the rubbish. You can make a different choice on 18 May," Zille said after a walkabout in the area.

According to the DA, children in the area were found playing among "soiled nappies, rotten food, dead animals and faeces".

Zille said the ANC had neglected to field a candidate in Ikageng.

"The ANC also neglected to field a candidate in this ward. In fact, a total of seven wards in the Tlokwe municipality are missing an ANC candidate.

"If all our supporters vote on 18 May, we can win this municipality. We can win in Potchefstroom."

Zille said she could not promise big changes overnight, but that if the voters chose the DA, the town would never be the same again.

"My only promise is this - the day we are elected to office is the day we start working for you. We will stop corruption and use your money for development and progress," she said.